From the press box: Silva vents as transfer deadline looms

Jack Kelly reacts to yet another fiery Marco Silva press conference.

Do you remember when the Chuckle Brothers would get themselves into a spot of bother in the popular TV show Chucklevision? Usually Paul would turn to his brother Barry and say “Oh dear oh dear” in a worried tone. Well, that was very much my reaction walking out of Motspur Park this afternoon.

For the second week running Marco Silva cut a frustrated figure. In fact, I would label the emotion more exasperation than frustration.

It actually started in fairly positive fashion; news that Antonee Robinson and Ryan Sessegnon will be assessed ahead of the visit of Manchester United on Sunday. Robinson has barely featured in preseason following his surgery at the end of the last campaign. But he’s a player who is so key to how Fulham play, it would be crucial to see his return either on Sunday, or perhaps away at Walham Green.

Then, of course, time for the transfer questions. Here we go again. Here we go - three words we haven’t heard at all from a certain football journalist’s mouth. (I literally have his tweet notifications on, and I’m begging for a Fulham bomba.)

Silva didn’t mince his words: “How we should feel as a club - At this stage of last season, we had two-three players in. This season, we had a plan, the plan has fallen through. It's our fault, not active at all. We cannot be pleased at all.

"The plan has been there for many many months. We agreed on our direction. Now is the moment to take the best decisions we can. We have 10 days, in May we had almost three months. We're still working to correct things we haven't done in the last thre months.

“I cannot tell you that someone is going to arrive tomorrow or in two day's time because I'm not sure and, to be honest, I have big doubts that it's going to happen. We need solutions in the back line, we are short in certain positions. We need another midfielder."

I managed to ask him four important questions in the embargoed section. All with answers I think Fulham fans will be interested in. Those quotes will be live on Saturday night at 22:30.

It’s quite clear now: time is running out. Shahid and Tony are in town, and you’d think that would mean signings could be on their way. One can hope. Based off opinion, I’m expecting a busy deadline day. But I always expect that. Marco has not been given what he had demanded back in May.

Fulham need to react, and adapt. Losing out on key targets will have been a huge blow for the board, but there is still some time left to fix the gaping holes in the squad.

I felt pleased with my work today. Some pressing questions to the manager, without being too evasive or pushy - but the right tone too. I think to some level, Marco knows that I like the niche questions, while also expecting questions that fans are desperate to know the answer to. Most of that was covered in the broadcast section, which was good.

Confirming that Fulham are looking to tie Rodrigo Muniz down to a new deal was a promising sign, after the ever-growing feeling that he may be off to Italy, which dominated the Fulham space in the last 10 days. Muniz is ready to play, to stay and make an impact - just like last week at the AmEx.

I then left the training ground to see *yet another* rumour that Fulham were still exploring a loan move for Reiss Nelson.

Nelson, Kevin, Samuel Chukwueze and Raheem Sterling. In this maddening rumour-filled merry-go-round. Almost as if the Fulham board are picking these four wingers on rotation to then continue negotiations for the 100th time this summer.

That makes me think of another famous line from Chucklevision.

“To me, to you. To me, to you.”

Bloody hell - come on Fulham.