Revealed: What Fulham must do to convince Marco Silva to sign new contract
Fulham have had a frustrating start to the Premier League season so far with concerns beginning to emerge both on and off the pitch.
Marco Silva’s side lost 2-1 to Newcastle at St James’ Park on 25 October, with a 90th-minute strike from Bruno Guimaraes depriving them of a hard-earned point.
As a result, the Cottagers have now won just one of their last five league games, and have dropped to 16th in the table with just two wins in their opening nine games.
Alongside their on-pitch concerns, however, they are also dealing with issues behind the scenes, with Silva‘s contract set to expire at the end of the season.
This comes after Silva was linked with the Nottingham Forest job, and Man United were interested in the Fulham boss, leading to uncertainty in West London.
Fulham told what they must to do agree Marco Silva contract
Football Insider revealed on 24 October that Fulham are doing everything to keep Silva at Craven Cottage and do not plan to let him leave.
As I revealed on the latest edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, the boss is demanding the club match his ambitious plans for the future, and they must prove they are willing to back him if he is to sign a new contract.
This comes following a frustrating transfer window at Craven Cottage, which led to suggestions that Silva is not happy at Fulham due to their lack of ambition.
Speaking on the Inside Track podcast, I explained: “Yeah, no doubt he has been frustrated at the club’s lack of activity in their transfer market.
“He felt they should have done more to strengthen the squad having had a really good season last time out. That will play a role in any negotiations over a new deal.
“Obviously, Fulham are very keen to extend Silva’s contract. They don’t want to see him walk away in the summer, because he will be a hard act to replace.
“They’ve finished 10th, 13th and 11th, and got a club record points tally last season, so he’s continually making improvement and progress at Craven Cottage.
“Silva, as long as he is sort of reassured over Fulham’s ambitions and that they can build on the success they’ve had so far, I’m sure he’s happy at Fulham if the terms are right and he gets the right backing in the transfer market as well to build on things.“
Football Insider revealed on 19 October that Silva’s release clause is worth upwards of £10million, but if he leaves for free, they will miss out on a significant fee.
Fulham concerned about Silva future amid claims he will quit
While Fulham are determined to keep Silva at the club, their difficult start to the season will be doing little to convince him given his recent frustrations.
A slow transfer window, despite some late deadline day deals, forced the manager to question their ambitions and backing, with those concerns lingering.
This comes as former Man United chief scout Mick Brown told Football Insider on 21 October that Silva is “likely” to walk away from Fulham upon the expiry of his contract.
Football Insider revealed on 10 October that Saudi Pro League clubs are tracking Silva in case he becomes available, having been long-term admirers of his.
Meanwhile, Fulham are fearing the worst over Silva’s future and the possibility that he could be tempted away given the level of interest in his signature.
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