Fulham 'fail in bid to sign Stuttgart's Silas'

The Cottagers are looking to strengthen their squad in the final hours of the transfer window, and their focus appears to be on the final third.

Fulham Marco Silva is keen to bring in a new centre-forward to provide competition to the likes of Raul Jimenez, Rodrigo Muniz and Carlos Vinicius.

They allegedly submitted a fresh loan proposal for Armando Broja after identifying the Chelsea forward as one of their main targets.

With Fulham struggling to agree a deal for Broja, a recent report claimed that Fulham had turned their attention to Paris-Saint Germain forward Hugo Ekitike.

Unfortunately for the Premier League club, the 21-year-old striker is believed to be on the verge of completing a move to club side Eintracht Frankfurt.

According to journalist Florian Plettenburg, Fulham have also made an attempt to sign Silas from Stuttgart before the transfer window shuts at 11pm.

The Cottagers submitted a proposal to sign the 25-year-old on a loan deal, with an obligation to buy of €15m (£12.8m).

Silas, who can play as a winger or a centre-forward, has registered five goals and provided four assists in 19 competitive appearances.

In a new update, Florian Plettenburg has now revealed that Fulham's offer has been rejected, ensuring Silas will remain in Germany beyond the transfer deadline.

The DR Congo international, who is currently at the Africa Cup of Nations, was believed to be keen on the move to Craven Cottage.

However, a decision was made to reject Fulham's proposal following discussions between Stuttgart's sporting director Fabian Wohlgemuth and Silas' agent Mehmet Eser.

The Bundesliga club are under no immediate pressure to sell, with the player under contract until the summer of 2026.

Fulham will now have to focus their efforts elsewhere if they are to bring attacking reinforcements before the transfer window closes.