Fulham Held ‘Exploratory Discussions’ With Boss Before Turning To Alvaro Arbeloa | OneFootball

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Fulham held ‘exploratory discussions’ with Raffaele Palladino as part of their managerial hunt, amid Alvaro Arbeloa now closing in on the job.

A new era is set to begin at Craven Cottage after Marco Silva departed at the end of his contract to take charge of Portuguese giants Benfica.

The Portuguese tactician guided the Cottagers to an 11th-place Premier League finish in his final campaign, though former Premier League forward Charlie Austin was among those critical of Fulham’s style of play, branding them boring and overly cautious.

Several names were considered as potential successors, but Arbeloa, who recently took charge of Real Madrid, is now closing in on the role at Craven Cottage.

That shortlist also included Palladino, with the Italian having been ‘also evaluated’ by Fulham as a possible candidate.

The Italian tactician’s ‘modern’ and ‘proactive’ approach is claimed to have appealed to the Cottagers, while his work with Atalanta further strengthened his credentials.

According to Italian outlet Tutto Mercato Web, Fulham held ‘exploratory discussions’ with Palladino, however, they ultimately opted for Arbeloa, as an official agreement is expected in the coming days.

Palladino arrived in Bergamo last November when Atalanta were sitting in 13th place and guided them to a seventh-place finish and qualification for the Conference League.

Despite that turnaround, the Italian was dismissed at the end of the season and is now assessing fresh opportunities elsewhere.

Meanwhile, regardless of who occupies the dugout, the Cottagers are already active in the transfer market and are expected to make an offer for defender Mariano Troilo.

Another player on their radar is Auxerre attacker Lassine Sinayoko, though several fellow Premier League clubs are also involved in the race for his signature.

Whether Fulham’s decision to turn to Arbeloa rather than Palladino proves the right one will become clearer over the course of the season.

The Spaniard has just six months of senior managerial experience to his name, and how he copes with the demands of Premier League football remains to be seen.