Football
Exclusive: Fulham and Sunderland Ready to Take a Gamble on Josh Dasilva Comeback
Fulham and Sunderland are interested in signing Brentford's midfielder Josh Dasilva on a free transfer after he was not offered a new deal by the club. Despite recovering from a serious knee injury, Championship clubs are also keen on the 26-year-old who previously played for Arsenal and represented England U-19. Other clubs like Sheffield United and Coventry City are monitoring Dasilva's situation closely.
Leicester City v Brentford FC - Premier League by Visionhaus | Getty Images
Fulham and Sunderland are both willing to take a gamble of Brentford midfielder Josh Dasilva on a free transfer, SportsBoom can exclusively reveal.
But a number of Championship clubs have also expressed an interest in signing the 26-year-old as he continues his recovery from a serious knee injury.
The Bees decided not to offer Dasilva, who joined them in August 2018, a new deal.
But the club are continuing to help him recover from at their state-of-the-art Robert Rowan Performance Centre ahead of leaving the club after seven years of loyal service.
Dasilva, whose contract expires at the end of the month, last played for the West London club in January 2024 before being sidelined after for 18 months following his unfortunate training injury.
Dasilva was a key player as the Bees famously won promotion to the Premier League after winning the 2021-22 Championship play-off final.
He only played nine league games in the club’s debut season in the top-flight, but the following season was a mainstay of the side which achieved a respectable ninth place finish in the 2022-23 campaign.
GUNNERS GRADUATE
Dasilva, who came through Arsenal’s successful academy system, played 36 times that season in the Premier League and was part of the successful England side which won the UEFA European Under-19 Championship in 2017.
However, he made just three Premier League starts in the 2023-24 season after getting injured in a training session ahead of playing Manchester City - and therefore didn’t play at all last season for the club.
Our sources have discovered that Fulham and Premier League returnees Sunderland have both expressed an interest in the player, someone they believe at 26 can still perform at the top level providing he stays injury free.
And both Sheffield United and Coventry City have previously sent scouts to watch the player and kept themselves updated on the Dasilva’s recovery.
Neil has been a journalist for longer than he'd care to remember, having written for national newspapers and respected publications for over 25 years. For the last three years he has worked freelance for BBC Sport, working on the production desk as a sub-editor and also as a writer, covering a whole range of sports.