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Premier League side Fulham remain in search of a new manager after Marco Silva left the club at the end of his contract in early June.
Several candidates have been linked with the role, including former Liverpool defender Alvaro Arbeloa, who recently left Real Madrid.
While reports suggested Fulham were in advanced talks with the 43-year-old over the post, the club’s vice-chairman and director of football operations Tony Khan has clarified that the process is still ongoing, with multiple candidates still under consideration.
Speaking to the club’s in-house media, Khan confirmed that the board has held several meetings with two leading contenders and admitted Silva’s departure came as a surprise.
He did not confirm whether Arbeloa is among them. Khan also added that any major transfer activity will be addressed only once the managerial appointment is finalised.
“We have to bring in a new coach, it’s something we’re working on & we’ve been actively talking & working to find someone to come in. The expectation here for a while was that Marco was going to stay,” Khan said.
“There’s been a lot of names mentioned in the press & it’s interesting because it’s going very well & there’s been a few great conversations in particular. We’ve got a few people the board is talking to that are very exciting & interesting candidates.
“I have seen a lot of the press. There’s been people who we’ve been linked to where it says they were the frontrunner or that there was conversations, that were people we’ve never talked to or never even had a conversation about.
“At the same time, we have had lots of conversations, meetings. We’ve been actively talking. Now, there’s agents we’ve communicated with, we knew the availability of people, people have expressed interest.
“In particular, there are two candidates that have met with the board several times & we have a few candidates that we’ve had good conversations with.”
Khan added: ‘“In terms of the team, we absolutely have a lot of work to do. I think it’s very important to make the hire for who’s going to be the head coach before we figure out who comes in for potential transfers.
“At the same time, it’s important to talk with these candidates about their expectations & what we think of the squad, & what they think of the squad & then take their feedback & ideas & then incorporate that into the window.”
Fulham finished 11th in the Premier League last season, narrowly missing out on European qualification by just two points.
Former Liverpool and West Ham defender Alvaro Arbeloa has been linked with the managerial vacancy at Craven Cottage.
He stepped in as interim coach at Real Madrid towards the end of last season, having replaced Xabi Alonso, who has since taken charge at Chelsea.
Arbeloa also brings strong pedigree from his playing career, having featured prominently for Real Madrid and Spain during his time at the top level.