Yahoo Sport 
Marco Silva: From Paul Merson scapegoat to manager of the season contender?
No matter how this season ends for Hull City and Marco Silva, Paul Merson will probably still find a way to deride the Portuguese coach. Of course, the appointment Silva was famously denounced by the Sky Sports pundit before he had even taken charge of a single match. Why wasn’t a British manager given the chance to take over? What can Silva offer that Gary Rowett can’t? Merson’s questions were answered rather quickly.
Silva was appointed Hull City manager quite simply because he is an exceptional coach. Under Mike Phelan the odds were heavily against the Tigers in avoiding the Premier League drop, slumped at the foot of the table. They were on the fast track to the Championship, with the club selling every decent player on their books. Silva, just like Phelan, should have stood no chance.
READ MORE: Hull City Fan View – Tom Huddlestone could be Hull City’s final throw of the dice
READ MORE: Marco Silva calls for unity ahead of crucial final games
Yet the former Sporting Lisbon and Olympiacos boss has at least given Hull hope of staying up. He had the worst squad in the Premier League to work with, but has found a way to mould it into an effective unit capable of competing. Antonio Conte is a certainty to sweep the manager of the year awards, but if such awards are designed to recognise managers who have performed well above expectations Silva should surely be a candidate.
Paul Merson etc on Marco Silva’s appointment. Another reminder of the idiotic nature of English punditry & fishbowl it’s football lives in. pic.twitter.com/B0ZBAGiPy5
— Adam Joseph (@AdamJosephSport) April 6, 2017
Of course, Silva is at the moment charged solely with ensuring Hull City remain in the Premier League. But from an individual standpoint, he has already proved himself good enough for the division, no matter what happens between now and the end of the season. Despite Merson’s arguments, the Portuguese has passed the Premier League litmus test.
Even if Hull are relegated Silva should be on the shortlist of nearly every English top flight club looking for a new manager. When the first sacking is made next season, the Portuguese should be called upon. Five months isn’t much of a sample size, but Silva has used it to underline his own individual quality.
READ MORE: Premier League and Championship play-offs – 10 things to look out for
READ MORE: Lazar Markovic to miss Hull survival fight due to injury
“The first approach was to pass on the message: everything is difficult but it is also possible,” Silva explained in a recent interview, highlighting the mentality he has instilled in his players since taking over at Hull City in January. “It’s clear. We were the team who were last in the table. But it’s possible. And I believe, because if I did not believe then I would not be here. And I am not crazy.
“The other thing I told them was: ‘I want your minds to be open because we will change many things.’ And we have, nutrition, training, and the final thing I asked is the attitude every day. And the passion. The passion. Because I have one way: bring your real game to every training session. In every dimension: technical, tactical, physical, psychological. This is what I want and at the same level as in a match.”
Indeed, Hull are playing with more passion than they ever did under Phelan. For all his quality as a tactician, this is perhaps Silva’s greatest trait as a coach. Players play for him. It’s something that Jose Mourinho has based an entire career off, with Mauricio Pochettino adapting it for the modern age. Silva is the next to exploit the power of the relationship between a manager and his players.
READ MORE: Gossip – Arsenal ‘want Morata’, Atletico ‘chase Premier League trio’
READ MORE: Mourinho sarcastically thanks referee Oliver after Man United punch Stockholm ticket
READ MORE: 8 games that have defined the 2016-17 season
Pochettino is perhaps the best precedent for Silva to follow. He too was something of an unknown quantity when he pitched up at Southampton in 2013, but very quickly proved himself on the south coast. Now he is considered one of the brightest young coaches in Europe, turning Spurs into genuine title contenders.
It’s feasible that should he make the right choices in his career Silva could follow a similar route. His upward trajectory should certainly take him higher than Hull City. But even then, Merson would probably still argue that Rowett would do a better job.
