Five of Fulham’s seven December fixtures see us up against the Premier League’s current top seven.
It’s a famously hectic time of the year, and Marco will be giving every match the respect it deserves, while also hoping to have some players return from injury sooner rather than later.
“It's going to be a busy one and really tough one,” he said of the festive calendar. “When you look on the paper and periodically, they are going to be really tough games. It is what it is, it’s part of the schedule.
“We all know that we have to have this busy December – Boxing Day against Chelsea, next week against Liverpool, tomorrow and in four days Brighton and Arsenal as well. Plus, Southampton, plus Bournemouth at the end of the year as well.
“What I would like is to have all the players available, because we know that with all of them, we are more able to rotate players and to put some fresh legs inside, because we need [it], like the other teams need it as well.
“Let's see when Harrison and Joa can come back, because we are going to need all of them available.
“About the schedule, the next one is the more important one for us. It’s going to be Brighton, and after will come Arsenal. We respect all the teams in the same way.
“Sometimes, if you talk with the football people, with our fans, they expected us to take much more from the Wolves game at home than Tottenham away from home. And the reality in the Tottenham game is we took one point and deserved more, and against Wolves, even if we deserved much more, we didn't take [anything], and football is like that.
“The Premier League is the best example of what I'm talking about, and we have to be always in our best, we have to reach our certain standards that are important for us.”
Fourth placed Brighton provide the next test, a side that Silva has always been impressed by, regardless of who they have at the helm.
“They have a clear identity as a football club, first of all,” he said. “Since I'm here, I already played against three different managers, and the reality is that these different managers that I played, all three seasons, they have always been finishing in a good level and improving as a club. You can see from outside.
“But the idea of the club, for sure the structure is there, and they know what they have been doing.
“When they go to the market, they have been capable to find what they really need and what they want. Some young players, very skilful players, the pace in the team, the quality of the players.
“Of course, this summer, last summer as well, was slightly on a different page, because when you see a team spent almost £200million means that the quality has to be there.
“And in terms of the market this season, probably one of the teams that spent the most money in the Premier League. That shows their ambition, shows the reality of the club right now.”