Results| Thursday 12/02 |
Brentford | 1-1 | Arsenal |
Nottingham Forest next manager: Marco Silva a 'real possibility' after Fulham exit news
Marco Silva is increasingly likely to leave Fulham at the end of the season after constant delays over their offer of a contract extension.
Silva's deal will expire in June, and there is a growing feeling that the boss will move on, having achieved all he can during his time at Craven Cottage.
Former Man United chief scout Mick Brown told Football Insider that Silva is already eyeing his next destination as he plans to take on a new challenge.
This comes after Nottingham Forest confirmed that Sean Dyche has been sacked from his position following their 0-0 draw against Wolves at the City Ground.
Silva is certain to be a contender for the Forest job, having worked with controversial owner Evangelos Marinakis during his time in charge at Olympiacos.
Marco Silva edges towards Nottingham Forest move
Football Insider revealed on 10 February that Nottingham Forest will "seriously consider" Silva among their leading candidates should he become available.
The change in situation at the City Ground may have accelerated that decision, with Silva's likely departure from Fulham presenting the ideal opportunity.
"I can't see Marco Silva signing a new contract at Fulham," Brown told Football Insider.
"Just based on little bits I've heard here and there, it seems like he feels he's taken them as far as they can go, they're just a steady mid table club.
"He wants to look for a new challenge and maybe a club who he feels he can take higher than where he feels like he's hit a bit of a ceiling at Fulham.
"The problem for him is, I don't think he'll be a front-runner for Man United or Tottenham, for example.
"He fits better at a team where he can come in and elevate things, get the players performing above their usual level, rather than at one of those top clubs.
"Somewhere like Nottingham Forest might be perfect for him, where he would have the backing of the owners and all of that sort of thing.
"There's potential there to get them playing and moving further up the table than they have been this season, and they've got some top players already.
"So yeah, that could be a real possibility for him because as I said, I don't think he's going to stay at Fulham beyond the end of the season."
Could Fulham keep Silva at Craven Cottage?
Despite the belief that Silva is edging towards the exit door at Craven Cottage, Fulham still remain hopeful he could put pen to paper and extend his stay.
Football Insider revealed in November that Fulham want to extend Silva's contract and have held talks about tying him down to a long-term deal.
That came at a time when the Portuguese boss was under scrutiny following a dismal run of form as they aimed to show their support for him despite the poor form.
However, his side's inconsistent performances and inability to rise up the Premier League table has added to his belief that he may need to move on to further his career.
A 3-0 defeat to Man City last time out followed a frustrating 2-1 defeat at home to Everton, and it looks like Fulham will be stranded in mid table yet again.
https://www.footballinsider247.com/nottingham-forest-next-manager-marco-silva-a-real-possibility-after-fulham-exit-news/
How Marco Silva feels about joining Nottingham Forest after Sean Dyche sacking
Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis sacked Sean Dyche in the early hours of Thursday morning.
Sean Dyche was given his marching orders following Nottingham Forest's draw against Wolves at the City Ground.
It has been reported that Dyche lost the dressing room at Forest, with club captain Morgan Gibbs-White evidently growing frustrated with his tactics.
The focus now turns to who could replace Dyche, and former Wolves boss Vitor Pereira is being linked to Forest.
Now, a fresh report has just provided an insight into how Marco Silva would feel about joining and working under Evangelos Marinakis again.
Marco Silva's stance on joining Nottingham Forest
Marco Silva was linked to the Forest job following Nuno Espirito Santo's sacking earlier this season.
Marinakis worked with the Portuguese head coach at Olympiacos, and the Fulham manager is almost certain to be heavily linked once again.
According to Daily Mail journalist Tom Collomose, Silva is 'admired greatly', however, the appointment is deemed unlikely.
The report suggests that the Fulham manager will be aiming 'higher', with the likes of Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur mooted as potential destinations in recent weeks.
The 48-year-old is out of contract at Craven Cottage at the end of the season, so in any case that Forest do manage to convince him, he won't be available until the summer.
Nottingham Forest seem to want an interim manager
Given the early interest in Pereira, it would appear Marinakis and his Forest chiefs are leaning towards the idea of an interim manager.
Forest are eyeing Oliver Glasner ahead of his Palace departure this summer, so a stopgap looks like the most favoured route.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could be another decent option on a short-term contract, as he has a history of lifting morale and getting a bounce.
Solskjaer was linked with the Manchester United job before Michael Carrick was given the nod for the remainder of the season.
https://www.nottinghamforest.news/2026/02/12/how-marco-silva-feels-about-joining-nottingham-forest-after-sean-dyche-sacking/
Andersen: Keep our heads high
Joachim Andersen is maintaining a positive mindset despite a difficult evening against Manchester City on Wednesday.
A confident and ruthless City outfit did the damage with three goals inside 15 first half minutes. Fulham fought relentlessly throughout the second half for a way back into the contest, but had ultimately been given too great a deficit to fight back from.
"It was really tough," Andersen admitted. "I think City played really well first half and were clinical.
"We defended a little bit too much, we wanted to press them a little bit higher, but I think we came too passive in the first half and they had the ball quite easily with no real pressure, and that made it difficult for us.
"Obviously when you're 3-0 behind at half-time, it's tough, but we said to ourselves that we had to give it a go, like last time [at home against City], unfortunately this time we didn't score and make it difficult for them.
"At least we tried, and everyone fought really, really hard second half. Of course we're disappointed, but we have to go again."
It's now just one win in the last five Premier League outings for the Whites, but Andersen sees no reason to panic, with all the matches – bar City – decided by very fine margins.
"Of course, the results lately have not been going our way," he said.
"I think we've been a little bit unfortunate – against United we deserved more, we should at least get a draw there, and last game against Everton we should be three or four up at half-time, and then second half was not good from our side.
"So I'm quite positive. City away is a tough game, so we'll keep our heads high and go again."
https://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2026/february/12/andersen-keep-our-heads-high/
Club 'make room' for arrival from Fulham – Sticking to 'promise', rival has no issues with transfer
Mexican side Club America are making room to sign Fulham striker Raúl Jiménez in the summer, so that they can keep a 'promise' to do so.
That's according to Marca. They report that The Eagles appear to be setting the stage for the Mexican striker to return to his old club this summer.
Jiménez has long made it clear that he would like to play for his first club at some point again before he retires.
The Fulham striker has repeated this desire many times, but his performances in the Premier League have kept his return on hold for years.
At 35-years-old, though, now appears to be the ideal time for everyone. That's particularly the case as it seems Fulham are ready to part ways with him this summer. Sport Witness covered a report recently that stated Fulham will let Jiménez leave and replace him with Ricardo Pepi.
That followed reports that Club America want to make the veteran signing something of a blockbuster arrival after the World Cup.
Club America 'make room' for Jiménez
Marca now say they are laying the groundwork for that. According to the newspaper, The Eagles 'make room' for Jimenez to arrive after the summer showpiece.
They made this clear by closing the transfer window without signing a 'major' striker. That's despite them suffering from goalscoring issues.
Journalist Rubén Rodríguez in Medio Tiempo then explains that the plan is to 'save their budget'. That's so they can get Jiménez in the summer instead. He'll be a free agent, but the Mexican club need money for his wages instead.
"Let Raul come to America"
And should they do so, it won't cause ripples in the squad either. In fact, current striker Henry Martin is ready to welcome his compatriot with open arms.
"Let Raul come to America, what better, right?" El Heraldo report him saying.
"That is, to be able to share again dressing room with him, as I have shared in selection. He's a great person, he's a great guy. He's a guy who never stops fighting and was already proven after his last injury he had, that everyone thought he wasn't going back and came back, and he came back better than ever.
"So, he too, like me, has shown that resilience is a characteristic of him. That his skin is always tattooed, he has it in his veins and he will never stop fighting. And it makes me very happy to be able at some point to share a dressing room with him back."
https://sportwitness.co.uk/club-make-room-for-arrival-from-fulham-sticking-to-promise-rival-has-no-issues-with-transfer/
Six Things We Learnt From Manchester City 3–0 Fulham
Manchester City 3–0 Fulham. Fulham fall to a fourth loss in five games and a 20th consecutive loss to Manchester City in an embarrassing first half display. Here's six things we learnt from Manchester City 3–0 Fulham:
Fulham Lack the Mentality for Europe: Tactical Revamp Needed
After a six week spell that saw Fulham lose just one in eight games, post Chelsea away, it's fair to say the tactics that saw Marco's men soar to seventh have been found out.
The tactics and individual magic have ceased to work the magic they did a couple of weeks ago and Fulham are set to buckle under European pressure yet again. Fulham's consistent inconsistency is almost impressive.
This seems to happen every season. Fulham find a winning formula and hit an electric vain of form mid season and fall off after reaching the apex of our season (Chelsea at home this year).
Fulham look in desperate need of a tactical reset but, in fairness, that's hard to do without much central midfield variety...
Fulham Need Two Midfielders
If there's one thing you should takeaway from last night's **** show and the past few weeks, it's this:
Fulham are in desperate need of two central midfielders.
Alex Iwobi and Sander Berge are average players that at point look like decent Premier League players, but if anyone could tell me what unique skill set either them add to this Fulham team, I'd love to know.
Alex Iwobi has been a complete passenger since his return from AFCON. In a game where Fulham needed Iwobi to dictate the little possession we had, Alex did anything but that. He looked anonymous off the ball and on it.
Sander Berge flashes brilliance but overall looks completely average. He's not a midfield breaker, he's not the progressive dribbler I once appraised him to possibly be. What is he?
One thing that he is, is the least aerially effective 6'5 bloke on the planet — what was he doing for that first goal?
Squad players? Sure. A midfield duo? No chance. Both must be upgraded in the summer.
Get Joao Palhinha back. Joao needs us and we need Joao's midfield steel, desperately.
Motspur Stars have Heads Held High: King & Sessegnon Promising
Both of Fulham's bright sparks were Motspur Park academy graduates tonight.
Ryan Sessegnon is the lone starter that can come out with any credit after putting in another impressive display down the left.
Josh King had another eye catching cameo off the bench, with King doing more than enough to not only earn a start at Stoke, but in the league too.
While I understand King's physical limitations, if Alex Iwobi continues to be this anonymous in and out of possession, why not give Josh a go in the №8 position?
Harry Wilson: Purple Patch Ended?
Bar the first half of this season, Wilson's time at Fulham has been thwart by inconsistency and I think we are seeing Wilson's most prolonged, yet latest, purple patch come to an end.
Wilson failed to put away a chance at 1–0 that would have made it a different game at the Etihad. Add to that a relative ineffectiveness across his 72 minutes that saw him not win a single ground duel or complete a dribble, and I think Samuel Chukwueze should be brought back into his natural right wing birth against Sunderland.
Marco Silva Got It Wrong
The decision to not start a back five, a formation that saw us see relative success last time out at the Etihad, seemed a strange call prior to kick off, and it proved to be just that.
Throughout the first half Fulham were completely content with not getting into the City half and holding what must of been about 10% of the ball come half time.
If doing that, why not add an extra defender into the mix? Allow us the solidity to perhaps build some counter attacking moves and permit us some ability to get forward.
Silva's unwillingness to commit to an all out defensive structure or a game plan that would of seen Fulham take it to Manchester City was what saw Fulham stuck in no man's lands — that's a recipe for disaster against Manchester City.
Don't let a decent second half display against a City team in a defensive training exercise fool you, that performance was a disgrace.
Fulham Need Loyalty Points Reform
Forget the performance, the fact that Fulham fans received a measly five loyalty points for a trip to the other end of the country on a Wednesday night is an absolute farce.
That's trip and that performance warranted the same amount of points as Middlesbrough (at home!) in the cup, three more points than Chelsea away, and one tenth of a season ticket.
If you wanted proof that the club don't care about their away support, it's this.
Our loyalty points system is a disgrace and it has to be changed. It's time Fulham's hardcore support were properly compensated, rather than forgotten about.
https://medium.com/@LondonsOriginal/six-things-we-learnt-from-manchester-city-3-0-fulham-efe87408320d
"A high probability" – Club 'confident' on Fulham transfer, "high probability" it happens
AC Milan are confident that Fulham will move to sign winger Samuel Chukwueze on a permanent basis in the summer transfer window.
That's according to journalist Alessandra Gozzini in Gazzetta dello Sport. Milan News cover comments from her today about Chukwueze's future.
He joined Fulham on loan in the summer transfer window. That deal includes an option for Marco Silva's side to make it permanent, and it seems Milan are confident that will happen.
"A high probability"
Gozzini certainly believes it's on the cards. That's if her latest comments are anything to by.
"The rich Premier League could fill AC Milan's coffers with another €24 million if Samu continues his good form in the second half of the season," she is quoted as saying.
"He has scored three goals and four assists despite a season hampered by some physical ailments, which saw him involved extensively in the Africa Cup of Nations (third with Nigeria), forcing him to miss six Premier League matches.
"Since returning to England, he has played three more times, twice from the start against United and Everton.
"Chukwueze can now consider himself a regular in the team, and AC Milan are confident that Fulham, tenth in the league, will be able to championship, choose to exercise the buy-back option. There's a high probability."
If that happens, it will help Milan to 'smile on the financial front'. They've already brought in €20m from selling Alex Jimenez to Milan. Added funds from Chukwueze would provide them a 'significant boost' ahead of next season.
'Already an idol'
It certainly wouldn't be surprising for Fulham to make the move permanent. Indeed, Sport Witness covered a report at the beginning of December highlighting as much.
That stated that Chukwueze was 'already an idol' at Craven Cottage. Reports indicated Fulham were leaning towards making his loan move permanent. Now it seems Milan think it'll happen as well.
The numbers back up the 26-year-old as well. Despite playing just 676 minutes, he has recorded three goals and four assists in 14 games across all competitions.
That's a major jump up from his time at AC Milan. He managed five goals and three assists in 33 games last season. His goals/assists per 90 have also jumped from 0.6 to 0.93. Perhaps that is why Fulham are convinced.
https://sportwitness.co.uk/a-high-probability-club-confident-on-fulham-transfer-high-probability-it-happens/