MX23RW : Thursday, October 31 23:27:38| >> :120:4517:4517:

Marco Silva not concerned with favourites tag as Fulham prepare for new season

Marco Silva not concerned with favourites tag as Fulham prepare for new season
© Reuters
The Cottagers are aiming to bounce straight back into the Premier League.

Fulham manager Marco Silva insists the club are not feeling the pressure of being among the promotion favourites as he prepares for his first game in charge.

Middlesbrough, under manager Neil Warnock, will be Fulham's first opponents of the new Championship season as Craven Cottage could welcome more than 2,000 fans for the first time since February 2020.

The Cottagers were relegated last season after just one campaign back in the Premier League, while Silva had been out of work since being sacked by Everton in December 2019.

Silva took the reins on July 1 after Scott Parker had departed to become Bournemouth manager, and insists being labelled as one of the league favourites is of no concern to the squad.

"When you look for the Championship competition and the contenders, it is normal that you create some favourites and the teams that got relegated, normally they are the three contenders to the competition and they are the favourites, or everyone calls them the favourites," Silva said.

"There is something natural, it is normal for us and it is not even a pressure for us because we look for that as a normal situation in football.

"Given time, we and other clubs will for sure try to do the same and get to those spots on the table that can give us the chance to play Premier League next season, and there are enough past examples that it is not so easy as everyone thinks."

The Fulham squad were heavily reliant on the loan market last season, including five members of the first team and stand-in captain Joachim Andersen, but the new manager says he is satisfied with his squad.

""I am happy with the players that we have here but sometimes to say that we kept all the squad is not true," the 44-year-old said.

""We kept our players, but if you remember we played last season with five loan players and none of them are here today. I'm not working with them."

Silva has already made two signings since taking charge, bringing in midfielder Harry Wilson from Liverpool and former Tottenham goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga, but more deals could yet be made before the end of the transfer window.

"Until August 31 anything can happen in football, even something you don't expect," he said.

"We are ready for anything that can happen in the market. We didn't have some offers for some important players in our squad.

"Of course I would like to keep all of them, but we are looking to the market to strengthen our squad as well."

ID:458384:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect3208:

Click here for more stories about Marco Silva

Click here for more stories about Fulham

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Barnsley manager Valerien Ismael celebrates after the match on March 13, 2021
Read Next:
How will the Premier League's relegated trio fare under new management?
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City97202091123
2Liverpool97111751222
3Arsenal95311710718
4Aston Villa95311611518
5Chelsea95221911817
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton94411612416
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest9441117416
8Tottenham HotspurSpurs94141810813
9Brentford94141818013
10Fulham93331212012
11Bournemouth93331111012
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle9333910-112
13West Ham UnitedWest Ham93241316-311
14Manchester UnitedMan Utd9324811-311
15Leicester CityLeicester92341317-49
16Everton92341016-69
17Crystal Palace9135611-56
18Ipswich TownIpswich9045920-114
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves90271225-132
20Southampton9018619-131


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!