As part of an ambitious overhaul which has received the green light from those upstairs at Craven Cottage, Fulham are now reportedly ready to open talks to sign a Champions League midfielder this summer.
Fulham working on fresh Marco Silva deal
When Tottenham Hotspur sacked Ange Postecoglou, there may have been some nerves around West London regarding Marco Silva’s Fulham future. Those nerves have since been eased courtesy of Thomas Frank, however, who is reportedly set to swap Brentford for the Lilywhites. Now, the Cottagers are reportedly keen to agree a fresh deal with their manager.
As things stand, the former Everton manager has just one year remaining on his Fulham contract, which will leave those in West London with a major problem this time next year unless anything changes.
Whilst concerns continue to grow over his contract situation, Silva has remained as calm as ever. When asked about whether he had rejected a new deal or whether negotiations were even underway, the Fulham boss told reporters: “No, not at all. We didn’t even start. I know there are some rumours around that I refused something but from my side, it’s not true at all.
“Our connection is very, very strong and it’s clear there are so many things for the club to be careful about with players’ contract situations, there are many important decisions ahead with the summer coming up after a great season where we improved like all the other years before.
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“We managed to reach some great numbers again, the best Premier League points tally in our history and if you want to improve, you have to focus on the most important things. I’m not saying the manager’s situation is not important but I’m under contract with the club, I just wanted to clarify that the conversations didn’t start and that’s not for professional reasons but it was just not the moment.”
Whilst the Portuguese manager remains in charge too, Fulham could be well positioned to seal a shock deal to welcome back an impressive midfielder this summer.
Fulham ready to make Palhinha move
According to GiveMeSport, Fulham are now ready to open talks to sign Joao Palhinha from Bayern Munich if the Bundesliga champions are willing to show their midfielder the door in the coming months. His arrival would be part of an ambitious plot to overhaul Silva’s side with as many as five fresh faces this summer.
The Portugal international is, of course, a name well-known around Craven Cottage given that he swapped West London for Bayern just one year ago. After making just six Bundesliga starts, however, the 29-year-old could be on his way back to the Premier League already.
Silva is certainly likely to welcome Palhinha back with open arms too, having praised the midfielder during his time at the club. The Fulham boss told reporters in Palhinha’s final season at the club: “His attitude, his commitment, the way he leads the others around are things that are hard to find in football.”
There’s no doubt that the midfielder’s return would suit all parties, but that’s not to say negotiations would be easy. Palhinha currently reportedly earns around £162,000-a-week at Bayern Munich, which is unlikely to be matched by Fulham.