Fulham Wiretap

Fulham are finalizing an agreement to appoint Alvaro Arbeloa as head coach on a three-year contract, according to club sources. The west London side have been without a permanent manager since Marco Silva's departure earlier this month.

The 43-year-old most recently served at Real Madrid, where he spent four months in charge before leaving at the end of the season. Arbeloa took charge at Madrid in January after Xabi Alonso's exit, with the club trailing Barcelona by four points in La Liga. The gap had grown to eight points by season's end.

Despite the difficult league campaign, Arbeloa guided Madrid past Benfica and Manchester City in the Champions League, before falling to Bayern Munich at the quarter-final stage. He also suffered a Copa del Rey loss at the last-16 stage to second-division club Albacete.

Fulham vice chairman Tony Khan stated last week that two leading candidates remained under consideration. Talks with Arbeloa have covered backroom staff composition and first-team squad planning, per club sources.

The Athletic reported on June 10 that Fulham had opened discussions with Arbeloa over a move to Craven Cottage. Silva, who departed the club following five years in the role, has since been confirmed as the new head coach at Benfica, replacing Jose Mourinho, who has taken charge at Madrid.

Fulham finished 11th in the Premier League for a second consecutive season in 2025-26. Silva was appointed in 2021 and delivered the Championship title in his debut campaign before stabilizing the club in the top flight.

If the agreement is finalized, Arbeloa will face his Madrid predecessor Alonso on the opening weekend of the Premier League season, when Fulham host Chelsea on August 24.

Fulham have entered discussions with Alvaro Arbeloa as the west London club seeks a successor to Marco Silva. Silva departed Craven Cottage this month after five years in charge and has since been named Jose Mourinho's replacement at Benfica.

Arbeloa became available when Real Madrid ended his six-month tenure at the Santiago Bernabeu, clearing the path for Mourinho's return to the club. The 43-year-old had served as Madrid's reserve team coach before being elevated to the top job on January 12 following Xabi Alonso's dismissal.

His stint at Madrid proved difficult. His first match ended in a stunning Copa del Rey exit to second-tier Albacete. The club subsequently fell to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarterfinals by a 6-4 aggregate score and finished the season eight points behind league winners Barcelona.

Silva's departure leaves Fulham without a permanent manager for the first time since 2021. The Portuguese coach arrived at Craven Cottage and delivered the Championship title in his opening season before steadying the club in the Premier League. Fulham finished 10th, 13th, 11th and 11th across his four top-flight campaigns, including a club-record 54 points in 2025.

As a player, Arbeloa spent the majority of his career at Real Madrid, winning two European Cups. He also featured for Liverpool and West Ham in the Premier League and for Deportivo la Coruna in Spain. Internationally, the former right-back earned 56 caps for Spain and was part of the squad that claimed the 2010 World Cup and European Championships in 2008 and 2012.

Fulham head coach Marco Silva is close to reaching an agreement to take charge at Benfica, with discussions between the two parties advancing significantly in recent days.

Silva's contract at Craven Cottage expires this month. Fulham have offered the 48-year-old Portuguese coach a renewal, but he has yet to accept, and no official confirmation of his departure has been made.

Benfica are seeking a successor to Jose Mourinho, who left the Lisbon club after signing a three-year deal to become Real Madrid's new head coach. Mourinho, 63, had returned to Benfica for a second spell in September and guided the club to third place in the Primeira Liga before departing.

Silva joined Fulham in July 2021 following a stint at Everton and immediately guided the west London club back to the Premier League after their relegation to the Championship the previous season. The Cottagers finished 11th in the top flight last season, level on 52 points with Chelsea.

Aston Villa and Sunderland dramatically outperformed their underlying metrics during the 2025-26 Premier League season, while Wolverhampton Wanderers produced the division's most extreme negative gap between expected and actual points, according to data from Understat.

Villa finished fourth with 65 points despite underlying metrics projecting just 51.07, a positive gap of nearly 14 points. The figures suggest Villa's results were driven by exceptional finishing efficiency, elite goalkeeping, or a combination of both rather than consistent process-driven performance.

Sunderland's debut top-flight campaign produced an equally striking result. The newly promoted side collected 54 points against an xPTS of just 42.03, nearly 12 points above projection, making their seventh-place finish one of the season's most surprising outcomes.

At the other end of the table, Wolves finished with just 20 points despite underlying metrics projecting 35.44, a shortfall of more than 15 points. The gap points to chronic problems converting chances and preventing goals in ways that defied statistical probability. Leeds and Crystal Palace also fell well short of their projections, underperforming by 9.50 and 8.88 points respectively.

Among the top three, Manchester United showed the largest overperformance gap at +6.55, finishing with 71 points against a projection of 64.45. Arsenal's title, by contrast, was the most process-backed of the three, with the smallest overperformance margin among the top sides at +5.13, suggesting their 85-point haul reflected genuine dominance rather than favorable variance.

Chelsea's 10th-place finish represented one of the more damaging underperformances in the division. Their xPTS of 58.85 projected a likely European contender; their actual return of 52 points left them outside the continental places entirely.

2025-26 Premier League: Actual Points vs. xPTS

1. Arsenal: 85 (79.87 xPTS, +5.13)
2. Manchester City: 78 (73.95 xPTS, +4.05)
3. Manchester United: 71 (64.45 xPTS, +6.55)
4. Aston Villa: 65 (51.07 xPTS, +13.93)
5. Liverpool: 60 (61.54 xPTS, -1.54)
6. Bournemouth: 57 (60.33 xPTS, -3.33)
7. Sunderland: 54 (42.03 xPTS, +11.97)
8. Brighton: 53 (55.35 xPTS, -2.35)
9. Brentford: 53 (57.24 xPTS, -4.24)
10. Chelsea: 52 (58.85 xPTS, -6.85)
11. Fulham: 52 (45.08 xPTS, +6.92)
12. Newcastle United: 49 (54.83 xPTS, -5.83)
13. Everton: 49 (46.17 xPTS, +2.83)
14. Leeds United: 47 (56.50 xPTS, -9.50)
15. Crystal Palace: 45 (53.88 xPTS, -8.88)
16. Nottingham Forest: 44 (42.24 xPTS, +1.76)
17. Tottenham: 41 (49.25 xPTS, -8.25)
18. West Ham: 39 (43.49 xPTS, -4.49)
19. Burnley: 22 (24.31 xPTS, -2.31)
20. Wolves: 20 (35.44 xPTS, -15.44)

Marco Silva has not committed to remaining as Fulham manager beyond this summer despite a three-year contract offer from the club. The Portuguese coach, whose deal expires at the end of June, told Match of the Day on Sunday that a decision has not yet been reached.

"I have not decided," said Silva following Fulham's 1-1 draw at Wolves. "I understand the fans want to know the future of the club. Myself and the club cannot communicate something when the decision is not made."

Silva described this summer as "one of the most important for the club's future" and indicated a thorough review lies ahead.

"We are going to have meetings, I am going to analyze," he said. "I believe there are many things to analyse and you need to be calm in this moment to address many, many things."

Silva had been linked with the Chelsea vacancy before Xabi Alonso was appointed Sunday. Those close to Silva say he holds ambitions to manage at the highest level, though he has previously demonstrated loyalty by rejecting multiple approaches from Saudi clubs. A return to Portuguese football has not been ruled out, with Benfica potentially needing a new coach if Jose Mourinho departs for Real Madrid.

Silva took charge of Fulham in 2021 when the club was in the Championship and guided them to promotion in his first season. He has since delivered three successive top-half Premier League finishes. Fulham sit 13th with one match remaining but have not won in three games, effectively ending their European qualification hopes.

Bukayo Saka delivered a dominant first-half performance Saturday, scoring and assisting as Arsenal beat Fulham 3-0 to extend their Premier League lead to six points over Manchester City. Viktor Gyokeres scored twice, with Saka's 40th-minute strike sandwiched between them.

Arsenal generated an xG of 3.32 to Fulham's 0.43, reflecting their complete control of the contest. Manager Mikel Arteta called it one of the best opening 45 minutes of the season.

"Today he felt loose, he felt relaxed, and I think we had the Bukayo that we know back," Arteta said of Saka, who has been managing an Achilles issue and was substituted at halftime.

"He certainly made a difference. He made two actions that decided the game, and we know what he's capable of. He's come back in the most important period of the season, and now he's fresh, his mind is fresh, his hunger is at the highest possible height and I think he needed a performance like that to impact the team."

Arsenal have played two more matches than City and are chasing their first league title in 22 years. The Gunners also remain alive in the Champions League, where they host Atletico Madrid on Tuesday in their semifinal second leg after a 1-1 first-leg draw.

Arteta said the result carries energy beyond the league table.

"That's what we want now, use that momentum, energy, belief towards Tuesday," Arteta said. "It's certainly going to do that and now we have one of the biggest games in the history of this stadium, for sure, on Tuesday in front of our people and we're going to try to make it happen."

Arsenal are now -172 favorites to win the Premier League, giving them a 63 percent probability of finishing first ahead of City.

A quirk in UEFA's qualification rules has created a scenario where as many as 14 Premier League clubs could secure Champions League football next season. The outcome hinges entirely on Aston Villa finishing fifth and winning the Europa League.

The Premier League confirmed this week that if Villa achieve both objectives, the European Performance Spot, an additional Champions League berth awarded to the top-ranked league in UEFA's coefficient table, would transfer from fifth place to sixth, which opens the door for clubs far down the table.

Currently eight points separate sixth-place Brighton from 14th-place Newcastle United. Teams including Chelsea, Fulham, Everton, Brentford, Bournemouth, Sunderland, Crystal Palace, and Brighton all hold realistic to strong chances of claiming sixth spot.

Villa currently sit fifth, three points behind third-place Manchester United. If they finish third or fourth, the bonus spot does not apply. Villa face Nottingham Forest in their Europa League semifinal first leg Thursday.

Chelsea's situation is among the most notable. Five straight league losses under former head coach Liam Rosenior, who was dismissed after 106 days, dropped the club to eighth. They trail Villa by 10 points in the league but responded with an FA Cup semifinal victory over Leeds, setting up a final against Manchester City.

Newcastle's position is equally unusual. Eddie Howe's side has lost four consecutive league matches and sits 14th, mathematically not yet safe from relegation, yet theoretically still capable of reaching the Champions League.

Four matches remain for most clubs as the race for sixth place could involve as many as six teams separated by three points.

Real Madrid and FC Barcelona lead Sportico's 2026 rankings of the world's 50 most valuable soccer clubs, valued at $7.7 billion and $6.65 billion respectively, the only two clubs to surpass $1 billion in annual revenue. Despite posting the sport's worst financial results, Premier League clubs dominate the overall list.

The 20 EPL clubs collectively recorded $1.05 billion in combined pre-tax losses in 2024-25, with Chelsea posting a league-record $346 million deficit. Only four Premier League clubs finished the season in the black. Newcastle United's reported $58 million gain was aided by a $176 million stadium sale to a related entity of its Saudi ownership group.

Despite those losses, 16 Premier League clubs cracked the top 50, with six occupying the top 10. The league's domestic broadcast rights alone generate $2.3 billion annually, with international rights surpassing the other four major European leagues combined.

Manchester United ranks third globally at $6.47 billion, edging past Barcelona for the first time before being overtaken in this year's updated figures. Bayern Munich and Liverpool round out the top five at $5.78 billion and $5.74 billion respectively.

The combined value of the top 50 clubs reached $95.5 billion, an 11% increase and the largest single-year gain in Sportico's four years of soccer rankings. The minimum valuation to crack the top 50 climbed to $675 million, up from $610 million a year earlier.

Real Madrid is projecting record revenue of $1.48 billion in 2025-26, the first full season following completion of the $1.2 billion Santiago Bernabeu renovation. Club president Florentino Perez is exploring a minority stake sale of up to 10% to surface the club's value.

MLS placed 18 clubs in the rankings, led by Inter Miami at $1.45 billion. Despite modest revenues, MLS clubs benefit from cost controls, modern facilities, and no relegation threat, factors that support a valuation multiple of 9.2 times revenue, nearly double the 4.9 multiple applied to elite European clubs.

Tottenham Hotspur, currently 18th in the Premier League standings and facing potential relegation, was marked down 5% to $3.5 billion. Several bankers told Sportico a sale is expected in 2026 if the club avoids the drop, but relegation would derail any transaction and trigger steep revenue declines across matchday, broadcast, and commercial streams.

English Premier League clubs recorded combined operating losses of £1.65 billion ($2.24 billion) in 2024-25, a 43 percent increase in a single year, even as collective revenues reached a record £6.8 billion, according to analysis by The Athletic.

Expenditure across wages, transfer fee amortization and operating costs rose by £911 million, nearly double the £462 million revenue increase. The division has now posted losses for seven consecutive seasons, accumulating more than £4 billion in deficits over that stretch.

Pre-tax losses across the league hit £787 million last season, a figure surpassed only by the pandemic-affected 2019-20 campaign. That total would have exceeded £1 billion without £296 million in internal asset transactions by Newcastle United, Aston Villa and Everton, which generated paper profits by shifting properties and subsidiary clubs within their corporate structures.

Wage costs climbed nine percent to £4.4 billion, pushing the league's wages-to-revenue ratio to 65 percent. The split between the traditional Big Six and the remaining 14 clubs is pronounced as the latter group spent 76 percent of turnover on staff costs alone.

Operating expenses rose 22 percent to £1.9 billion, now representing 28 percent of league revenues. For clubs outside the elite, wages and operating costs alone consume their entire income before transfer spending is factored in.

Only Liverpool generated positive free cash flow last season. Across the other clubs, owners injected more than £1.3 billion to cover shortfalls — the third straight year that figure topped £1 billion. Chelsea's BlueCo consortium alone has pumped in over £1 billion across three seasons.

Liverpool, Bournemouth, Ipswich Town and Crystal Palace were the only four clubs that turned a profit last season without relying on internal asset sales.

Ricardo Pepi's anticipated move to Fulham has collapsed after PSV Eindhoven and the Premier League club failed to resolve a critical contractual dispute, PSV announced Saturday. The two clubs could not agree on when responsibility for the player would formally transfer, with Fulham seeking the ability to withdraw from the deal before the summer window opened in the event of an injury.

"In the end, no agreement was reached on the moment when responsibility for the player would be transferred," PSV director of football affairs Earnest Stewart said.

ESPN reported last week that Fulham had a bid of approximately $46 million accepted by PSV. Pepi subsequently traveled to London to undergo a medical with the club. Fulham had also pursued the 23-year-old American striker in January, but that move stalled over a valuation gap and PSV's inability to secure a replacement in time.

Stewart acknowledged the failed transfer is particularly difficult for the player.

"Ricardo really wanted this move," Stewart said. "It's mainly a frustrating situation for Ricardo. Of course, we're happy to keep a good striker at the club."

Pepi has scored 13 goals in 27 appearances across all competitions this season for PSV, who lead the Dutch Eredivisie by 16 points. He returned from a broken arm suffered in January to score twice in four games since his comeback.

Stewart did not rule out a future agreement between the clubs.

"If a player can make a good move and it's also good for the club, then we'll go for it," he said.

Pepi holds 13 goals in 34 appearances for the U.S. men's national team and is included in Mauricio Pochettino's squad for upcoming friendlies against Belgium and Portugal.