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Everything wrong with Crystal Palace at the moment thread:
Lack of clarity over futures:
This is arguably the biggest problem of them all, with key members of the squad contracts running out in just over a month (and with no clarity to them or fans what is going to happen with them) it is a recipe for disaster
especially at this time of the season. With the players most likely not playing for contracts we could easily repeat a carbon copy of last seasons abysmal ending of the season with our ugly run in on the horizon.
Keep: Townsend, Benteke, Clyne, Ward, Kelly, Cahill,
Get Rid: Sakho, Wickham, Henderson, Hennessey, Batshuayi, Van-Aanholt, Mccarthy, Dann,
Get Rid: Sakho, Wickham, Henderson, Hennessey, Batshuayi, Van-Aanholt, Mccarthy, Dann,
Roy Hodgson:
There’s not really much to say on this front, I respect the man for the stability he provided when he took over from Frank De Boer but that was his job and he has overdue his stay by at least 2 seasons. I would personally say this is our most talented squad we have ever had
and its taken him until April to take the stabilisers off... i think its more then obvious he has a strong agenda against attacking mentality players like eze who has gradually developed into a defensive mindset player over the season
(compare his performance from his first start at leeds and chelsea yesterday). As soon with England, you can tell he has certain favourites which dents the pathway of our young upcoming players like Mitchell.
Wilfried Zaha:
This might come as a bit of a shock why our best ever player is included in this but let me explain. At the start of the season Zaha striker worked a treat because it meant they couldn’t double up on him down the left
but as the season has progressed we have learnt Eze has not fully adapted and is still learning to match the pace of premier league and physically so he makes it very difficult for zaha to dictate the game from upfront.
In my opinion, Eze is best out on the left and he plays the old role we classed as the ‘Loftus Cheek’ role very well but when Zaha goes out on the left for the latter stages of the second half thats when we really look like a threat going forward
Striker Options:
On paper, we probably have some of the best striker options in the league! But we are Crystal Palace so it’s never that easy...
Michy Batshuayi: His 2nd loan spell in South London hasn’t gone to plan here but michy is a very unique and naive footballer at the same time in my eyes. You cannot doubt his finishing ability is world class but it’s what he offers off the ball is the main problem.
In the 19/20 season we played some blistering counter attacking football which worked a treat for Michy because we worked it down the flanks and found him in the pockets where we finished 9/10 (Bournemouth last game of the season etc)
but it all seems very central and tunnel minded now and i feel like we have changed the way we attack since then which is why we have frustrated Michy with his game time.
Christian Benteke: New contract now! All jokes aside this man is our best striker and if you dont see it i feel for you, the man this season has a better minute to goal ratio then our very own England international Ollie Watkins.
Benteke has very much improved his all round game this season especially his link up play which I personally think has been superb and has just got better and better throughout the season. He has added goals to his game this season and has chipped in with some tidy finishes
throughout the season and shown why his heading ability is feared from the whole league
(West ham away, Spurs away). With the new manager links up in the air at the moment, i do not care who it is. Benteke has to stay
Jean-Philippe Mateta: Not much to say on this man because we have barely seen him but my personal opinion on him is that he will be the Benteke replacement... i think he has been very mobile and nippy when he has come on for cameos
i dont really have to say much about his finish at the amex, different gravy. I think this man will come good and will get a proper run in the team next season and also was great business from parish.
Transfer strategy/scouting:
think its safe to say we all knew our ageing squad would catch up to us, we were asking for it. I think you can look back on a few of signings and think, did we really need you? Parish knows he was naive with marquee signings (Sakho etc)
hence why has has invested a substantial amount into cat 1 and a new academy to try help us financially recover from the losses. The latest palace COVID loses had been released yesterday and 93% of income was covered from wages.
300k give or take will be taken off the wage bill in the summer and we will start from scratch. I think he definitely has a ‘long term plan’ pinned on his office door and we carry on the rebuild we started last summer and bring down that average age.
The Future: (manager, transfers and academy)
With an unpredictable summer just around the corner from us I know we say it every year but this summer will decide the premier league status of this club massively and where the club will be in 10 years time.
the new manager, for me it will either be Dyche or Howe. Parish wont bat an eyelid to look abroad after the shambolic appointment of Frank De Boer. He will want a premier league proven, fairly young and a level headed manager who has an idea where they want to take this club.
There are alot of pros and cons to Howe, it means you will either win or lose 5-4 but you are getting a manager who is hungry to prove himself. I think this break from football will definitely of made him reconsider his tactics and what went wrong in his last season on the coast
On the field, wont need to change much because his preferred formation is 442 so i can definitely see Parish having one eye on this one.
With Sean Dyche this one is a whole different story because in my opinion it is completely against the whole of identity of the club. From the famous 3-3 against Liverpool at selhurst to the iconic Leicester away wins we have been knowing for counter attacking football
sean dyche wont provide that. He will make us a hard team to beat at home which has been a myth under Hodgson. Another key factor is will he get the best out of our attacking minded players like Zaha and Eze?
The counter argument could be ‘yes look what he has done with Mcneil’ but i feel like Mcneil has developed into a very much system player but he plays a very similar role to Eze which is sitting on the left of a 442 like Eze.
The Academy:
One of the important question parish has to ask the future manager is his plans with the new cat 1 newly refurbished academy. As you may be aware the new under 18’s are currently joint top with Fulham in there first season under cat 1 status which is eye catching.
This weekend we had the Jese Rak-Sakyi on the bench against Chelsea which is a huge statement from the club and the direction the club want to go. It is such a exciting bunch with others like David Omilabu contributing to 15 goals this season
it really needs to be a huge factor into the next appointment and how they will get the best out of this group. Your move now Mr parish 
