On Thursday 1st July 2021, Marco Silva was appointed as Fulham's Head Coach on a three-year deal.

A right-back in his playing days, Silva made most of his professional appearances for the club at which he retired; GD Estoril.  

Immediately after hanging up his boots in the summer of 2011, he was appointed Director of Football at the Lisbon side. However, within a couple of months he was asked to manage to the team, aged just 34, following the dismissal of Brazilian coach Vinícius Eutrópio. 

The team were sitting 10th in the Portuguese second tier when Silva took charge, but he immediately demonstrated his managerial credentials by leading them to the title that same season. 

He was subsequently named the division’s Manager of the Year. 

Now in the top flight and competing with the likes of Porto, Benfica and Sporting Clube de Portugal, many expected Estoril to make an immediate return to the second tier.  

But Silva’s progressive style of football suited his team, and they finished in an impressive fifth position, two places ahead of their Lisbon rivals Sporting, bringing European football to the club for the first time in its history. 

The following season, Silva managed to go one better, leading Estoril to fourth spot in the Primeira Liga. 

His success was being closely watched from nearby, and in the summer of 2014 he made the half hour journey across the capital to join Sporting as their head coach. 

Silva spent only one season at the Portuguese giants but made his mark. Their third place finish was enough to secure Champions League football, while they also won the prestigious Taça de Portugal – the equivalent of the FA Cup – which was the club’s first silverware for seven years. 

A move away from his homeland came next, when historic Greek side Olympiakos came calling.  

Again, he made an immediate impact, winning his first 17 league matches to have the title all but sewn up by January. 

After that they dropped points in just two fixtures, meaning that they won the title by a ridiculous margin of 30 points. 

Olympiakos almost made it a domestic double only to be narrowly edged out 2-1 by AEK Athens in the Greek Cup, but another highlight did arrive in the UEFA Champions League when they defeated Arsenal 3-2 at the Emirates. 

Silva’s first job in England was a difficult one, with Hull City sitting bottom of the Premier League having won just three league matches all season. 

He won his first Premier League game 3-1 against Bournemouth, and took four points off Manchester United and Liverpool soon after. 

Four consecutive home victories then looked as though they might just about be able to pull off a great escape, but in the end the Tigers fell just short in 18th place. 

Nonetheless, Silva’s role in turning around the club’s fortunes impressed those elsewhere, with Watford deciding he was the man to take them forwards, having finished one place above Hull in 2016/17. 

He hit the ground running once more, with the Hornets losing just one of their opening eight Premier League matches – form which had them sitting fourth in the standings. 

Silva wasn’t at Vicarage Road for long, departing in January 2018, but left the club in a healthy position in the top half of the Premier League. 

His time out of work was brief, with long-time admirers Everton hiring him ahead of the new campaign. 

Silva’s first season in charge at Goodison Park saw him lead the club to eighth spot, narrowly missing out on a European place. One more win would have seen them leapfrog Wolverhampton Wanderers in seventh. 

The season featured impressive wins over Chelsea, Leicester City and Arsenal, in addition to a 4-0 thumping of Manchester United. 

His first campaign at Fulham could hardly have gone better, with the Club securing the Championship title in style. Highlights included Aleksandar Mitrović plundering a record-breaking 43 league goals, and the team winning 7-0 on no fewer than three occasions.