Fulham manager Marco Silva has insisted that he wants midfielder Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa to be involved in his squad once again amid the latest developments on his potential future.

It is believed by The Athletic that Anguissa was absent from Fulham’s opening Championship game of the season against Middlesbrough last weekend after he informed the club that he wants to try and secure himself a move away from Craven Cottage before the transfer window shuts.

That came amid reports that the likes of Everton, AS Roma and Valencia have all been interested in making a move for the talented midfielder this summer following Fulham’s relegation down to the Championship.

It has since been reported that Arsenal and Aston Villa are also in the race for Anguissa’s potential signature this summer.

While a report from Gazzetta dello Sport (print edition, August 11, page 10) revealed that Aston Villa are now leading the race for the midfielder following the funds they have been handed after Jack Grealish’s departure to Manchester City.

Speaking to The Athletic, Silva has now revealed that he wants Anguissa to continue to show desire to be involved for Fulham until his situation is resolved this summer.

He said: “It's something we will keep inside our football club. With Frank and all the others, I want them 100 per cent involved. I want all of them with a desire to work and win football matches in this shirt. All the other things are for us to talk about inside our club.”

The verdict

This is a very challenging situation for Silva, but following Fulham’s relegation from the Premier League last season they were always likely to encounter one or two players that were not satisfied with spending this term in the English second tier.

Anguissa is a player with ability that is above the level of the Championship and he showed that with his consistent performances for them in the middle of the park last season in the Premier League.

That came after he had returned from an impressive loan spell with Villarreal during the 2019/20 season when his current employers were earning promotion back to the top-flight.

Given the likes of Aston Villa and Arsenal are interested in the midfielder, it seems as though a route back to the Premier League is very much there for him in the next few weeks.

You can understand why he would want to do all he can to convince Fulham to cash in on him but he equally should not really be missing games as a result of that.

Silva’s comments here show that he is trying to get the midfielder back on side for the next few weeks ahead of any transfer. It would be in his interest to keep himself as fit as possible so that if he does make a move he is ready to make an immediate impact.