A-Z: Crystal Palace in limbo until they find new boss

Erm... tricky one... Roy Hodgson’s four seasons at Selhurst Park have come to an end and Palace are on the lookout for a new manager.

Chairman Steve Parish wants to get away from the safety-first football Hodgson but still hasn’t found the man he’s looking for.

It’s not apparently for the want of trying. Nuno Gomes, who recently left Wolves, came close to taking the job before apparently getting a sniff he might be in the running for the Everton job.

Frank Lampard reportedly held discussions but neither party felt the deal was right whilst Eddie Howe, Sean Dyche and Steve Cooper have also been mentioned.

Whoever is chosen has much work to do.

What’s the squad looking like?

Threadbare. No fewer than 15 first teamers are out of contract this summer and we’re not talking about academy prospects who haven’t quite made the grade.

These are front-line options Hodgson came to rely on. James McArthur, Gary Cahill and Christian Benteke are among the names whose deals run out at the end of the month whilst Michy Batshuayi will return to parent club, Chelsea, after his loan spell.

However, until a manager is appointed it’s difficult for any meaningful negotiations to take place. The new man may want a fresh canvas and relish remoulding a squad.

Wilfried Zaha is a man who is still under contract and it would be a surprise if the new man, whoever he is, wanted to move him on. Quite if Zaha sees his future at Palace remains to be seen – there has been constant speculation around him for two years with Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal and Everton all heavily linked.

Crystal Palace's Wilfried Zaha - still the main man at Selhurst Park, whether he likes it or not. (Image: PA Wire/PA Images)

There’s a school of thought that if you stop Zaha, then you stop Palace but the acquisition of Eberechi Eze last summer certainly helped take some of the creative strain away from the Ivory Coast international.

However, Eze’s long-term Achilles injury has rocked the Eagles and there has been no timeframe set for his return. It seems likely that he won’t be back until well into next season, meaning a new creative midfielder may have to be sourced.

Attention has reportedly turned to Chelsea youngster Conor Gallagher, who impressed in West Brom’s fight against relegation last season.

The 21-year-old wants to try and impress at Chelsea this summer but it is rumoured that a bid of £15m would be enough to get the deal done. However, it seems unlikely this can be signed off until a new manager is in position.

Last meeting with City...

January 1, 2020: Norwich City 1 Crystal Palace 1

Another occasion when VAR didn’t go in the Canaries’ favour.

Todd Cantwell had put City in front in only the fourth minute but Daniel Farke’s side paid the price for not capitalising on their early dominance.

Palace grew into the game and Connor Wickham struck a late equaliser. This was initially disallowed for offside but the dreaded VAR check ruled Christoph Zimmermann’s arm had played the former Ipswich man onside.

Did you know?

Norfolk official, Darren Cann, who was the assistant referee at the World Cup final in 2010, once had a trial with Crystal Palace as a striker.