The managerial carousel at the top of European football is spinning faster than anyone expected. It began when Real Madrid president Florentino Perez, freshly re-elected, decided to bring José Mourinho back to the Santiago Bernabéu from Benfica. That vacancy in Lisbon set off a chain reaction that has now reached west London, where Fulham are in advanced talks to appoint Alvaro Arbeloa as their next manager.
Arbeloa, 43, would replace Marco Silva, who spent five years at Craven Cottage but has opted to leave for Benfica — the club Mourinho just abandoned. The Portuguese giants had lost their manager to Madrid and quickly moved for Silva, despite Fulham offering a record contract to keep him. Super-agent Jorge Mendes brokered both deals, highlighting how the 60-year-old has become a specialist in high-profile managerial appointments.
“Fulham are in advanced talks to appoint Alvaro Arbeloa as Marco Silva's replacement after Silva left for Benfica.”
Arbeloa’s path to Fulham has been unusual. He spent his entire coaching career at Real Madrid, working his way up from the youth teams to the interim position last season after replacing Xabi Alonso midway through the campaign. Alonso, now incoming Chelsea manager, and Arbeloa were once so close as players that they went on holiday together. One well-placed source in Spain said that one replacing the other in January was initially awkward.
As a player, Arbeloa is best known in England for his impressive two-year spell at Liverpool before returning to Madrid for seven years and ending his career with a single season at West Ham. He earned 56 caps for Spain and was part of the team that won two European Championships and the World Cup between 2008 and 2012.
Fulham finished 11th in the Premier League last season. Talks with Arbeloa are ongoing, and while a full agreement has not been reached, the club are working towards the expectation that he will be their next boss. The Cottagers also held talks with Kieran McKenna, but it would have cost £8m to release him from his contract at Ipswich Town. McKenna has since departed the club, saying he wanted a break to spend time with his family.
Meanwhile, Mendes has been busy elsewhere. Another client, César Peixoto, manager of Gil Vicente in Portugal, is set to take over from Rob Edwards at Wolves. And Enzo Maresca’s imminent move to Manchester City also involves Mendes. With 10 Premier League clubs beginning next season with new managers — including Bournemouth, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham — this period of upheaval shows no sign of slowing down.