The FA Cup final win over Manchester City will live long in the memory of every Crystal Palace fan. Eberechi Eze’s winner ensured Oliver Glasner’s men won their first major trophy.
Euphoric is the best way to describe the feeling of watching Palace lift the cup at Wembley. Nobody could envision the hailstorm that would occur just nine months later.
Eze left for Arsenal in the summer, Marc Guehi moved to Manchester City in January, and Glasner confirmed he was leaving at the end of the season. The thrill of last season’s success has turned into tension between the manager and the fans.
Glasner drama taking hold
Glasner called out Palace’s ambition after losing Guehi to City in a £20m deal. The Austrian admitted he had failed to replace the English defender as his side faltered this season.
The Eagles are no longer flying high but instead floundering in mid-table following a 1-0 win over 10-man Wolverhampton Wanderers. That victory was just his team’s second in 16 games across competitions.
It came after a dismal 1-1 draw away to Bosnian minnows Zrinjski Mostar in the Conference League play-offs. The second leg between the two sides takes place on Thursday (February 26th) at Selhurst Park.
Glasner’s relationship with the club’s fans has soured, and he told them to “stay humble” on the weekend. This was in response to chants from supporters in Bosnia calling for his sacking.
Glasner looks set to continue until the end of the season after the board met to decide his short-term future. He is tasked with overseeing a turnaround in a difficult period for the club.
Palace fans’ feelings under debate
There is a huge debate over whether the Palace boss was properly backed by the higher-ups. This was discussed by Tom Garratt and Lewis Bowden on the latest episode of The Pitchside podcast.
Garratt argued against the idea that Glasner wasn’t supported in the transfer market: “How haven’t they backed him?”
He added, “I really want to break this down. They sold Eze for a record transfer fee (£67.5m) for him to go to one of the biggest teams in the world, the best team in the league. They then spent how much on Pino (£30m), they broke their transfer record on Brennan Johnson (£35m) and Strand Larsen (£48m).”
Bowden pointed out that Palace fans may have felt it was the time to kick on and push for more success: “What their point probably is, like we’ve just had this great thing, and this summer is the time for us to really recruit.”
The decision not to sell Guehi in the summer following his failed move to Liverpool was introduced into the debate. Garratt gave a firm response:
“No (shouldn’t have sold Guehi in the summer). They then went and got £20m for Guehi, who wasn’t going to sign a new contract and was going to leave for free at the end of the season. I don’t even know what happened with Guehi in the summer. We don’t know what happened there.”
Bowden disagreed when Garratt pointed to Pino, Johnson and Strand Larsen’s acquisitions:
“They could have backed him more in the summer. I can’t think of any crazy signings that they’ve done that’s f**ked their PSR. They will be in a steady place.”
Garratt replied:
“You know Palace won’t make any money revenue-wise… I can’t imagine they have much wiggle room for spending. Even so, they broke their transfer record twice this season.”
Know your role
Palace finished 12th in the Premier League last season, but their FA Cup win granted them European football. Bowden compared the situation to that of Newcastle when they finished fifth and qualified for the Champions League:
“I just feel for them a little bit because it reminds me of when we (Newcastle) came fifth and we didn’t invest in that initial period afterwards. Realistically, they could have spent that money at the start of the season.”
Garratt gave the Eagles supporters some advice, “You’ve had your FA Cup win, you’re in Europe, you’re not gonna go down. Let’s relax.”
Palace’s transfer activity in the past two windows is a hot topic of debate because of the money spent. While Garratt raises good points about breaking the club’s transfer record twice, the level of players arriving at Selhurst Park aren’t exactly floor raisers.
Bowden’s argument that the fans are well within their rights to hope for more success is likely a sentiment shared by the Holmesdale End. Playing in Europe is a dream, but maintaining the heights of last season should have been a goal for the club.
All eyes will be on who replaces Glasner and whether the club show ambition by appointing a high-profile tactician or goes for an easily attainable, less glamorous option.
