THE MANAGER
Marco Silva
Born in Lisbon, Silva developed into a professional footballer with local C.F. Os Belenenses. In a 15-year career, he only appeared in two Primeira Liga games, one with that club and another with S.C. Campomaiorense. From 2000 to 2005 he alternated between the second and third divisions, representing C.D. Trofense, Rio Ave FC, S.C. Braga B, S.C. Salgueiros and Odivelas FC.
In the 2005 off-season, Silva joined G.D. Estoril Praia, where he remained until his retirement six years later, always in the second tier. He played his last match on 2 January 2011, a 0–1 home loss against F.C. Penafiel in the group stage of the Taça da Liga.
Silva retired in June at the age of 34, amassing second-division totals of 152 games and two goals for three clubs.
Silva started as a Director of Football before venturing into management. Silva managed at Estoril, Sporting CP and Olympiacos before he was given the job at Hull City in England. Silva came in half-way through the 2016-17 season, with the club sat bottom of the Premier League. Unfortunately, Silva could not save the Tigers from relegation and resigned when their relegation was confirmed.
On 27 May 2017, it was confirmed Silva would join Premier League club Watford as head coach on a two-year contract. After a good start to the season, he was tracked for the vacant managerial position at Everton in November.
During this period and in the subsequent two months, the team's performances became increasingly poor (five points from 30 in ten Premier League matches), with fans citing his loss of focus as putting them at risk of relegation.
Silva was dismissed by Watford on 21 January 2018, with the club citing the "unwarranted approach by a Premier League rival" that caused "significant deterioration in both focus and results to the point where the long-term future of Watford FC has been jeopardised." In February, Everton agreed to pay £4 million in compensation in response to this claim.
After a short spell with the Toffees, Silva joined Fulham at the start of the 2021/22 season. Silva enjoyed a great season with Fulham, clinching the Championship title to secure Fulham’s return to the Premier League.
ONES TO WATCH
Bernd Leno
Leno performed at a level that belied his young age, becoming only the third goalkeeper in Bundesliga history to secure clean sheets in his first three matches, before breaking the record for the youngest ‘keeper to appear in the Champions League shortly after. Leverkusen soon made the deal permanent, and Leno went on to enjoy seven excellent seasons at the BayArena, making 304 appearances and keeping 100 clean sheets. The lowest the club finished, in six of those seven campaigns, was fifth. His consistency in Germany prompted Arsenal to bring Leno to London for a fee reported to be north of £20m ahead of the 2018/19 campaign. Leno quickly displaced Petr Cech between the sticks, and ended his first season at the club with a Europa League runner-up medal, before finishing second in the club’s player of the season vote a year later. He departed the Emirates with plenty of Premier League experience under his belt, and also claimed 37 clean sheets in his 125 appearances across all competitions.
Andreas Pereira
On Monday 11th July 2022, the Club announced the signing of Andreas Pereira from Manchester United for an undisclosed fee. The versatile midfielder agreed a four-year deal, tying him to Craven Cottage until the summer of 2026, with the Club holding an option to extend by a further 12 months. Born in Belgium while his professional footballer father was playing there, Pereira later moved to neighbouring Holland where he joined PSV Eindhoven’s academy. At the age of 16, he joined Manchester United, impressing as he moved up the age groups to earn a senior debut in the League Cup in August 2014. A Premier League bow followed later that season in a 3-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford. Pereira’s maiden goal for the club came in his first appearance of 2015/16 when he was handed a full debut against Ipswich Town, ending the campaign with 11 appearances to his name, including a first taste of Champions League football. Pereira was a regular under Jose Mourinho and then Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, featuring 62 times across the next two years.
Aleksandar Mitrović
In July 2018, Fulham confirmed Aleksandar Mitrović’s return on a permanent deal for an undisclosed fee from Newcastle United. Mitrović originally joined the Whites on loan at the 11th hour on deadline day in January 2018, and went on to have a hugely significant impact in their promotion to the Premier League. Mitrović began his career in his homeland with Serbian giants FK Partizan, making his professional debut with their affiliate club FK Teleoptik. Despite his tender age, Mitrović was top scorer for Partizan’s first team in 2012/13 as they claimed the title, and his form soon attracted the attention of Belgian outfit Anderlecht, who broke their transfer record to sign him in the summer of 2013.
Despite Fulham's relegation from the Premier League, Mitro impressed with his 11 goals, and subsequently committed his future to the Club by agreeing a new deal in July 2019. His subsequent two seasons in the Championship, which sandwiched one campaign in the Premier League, were absolutely sensational. Winning the divisional Golden Boot on each occasion, he set first a Championship and then a modern-day second tier record for in 2021/22, ending the season on 43 goals as Fulham won the title. He was named Fulham's Player of the Season both years.
FACT FILE
Name: Fulham FC
Founded: 1879
Owner: Shahid Khan
Manager: Marco Silva
League position: 7th (Premier League)
Nicknames: The Cottagers, The Whites, The Lilywhites
Top goalscorer: Aleksandar Mitrovic (3)
Kit provider: Adidas
