Dougie Freedman has left the building.
Steve Coppell: a good shout for another return to Selhurst Park?
In an official statement at 3.15pm this afternoon, Crystal Palace announced that the club’s manager since January 2011 had left to take up a similar position with Bolton Wanderers.
In an interview on Sky Sports News, Steve Parish, the club co-chairman who appointed the former striker to his first management post, said, “I hope people look at the things Dougie has done for us. Kept us up as a player and manager. He’s done many good things for this club.”
Parish probably echoed the shock of many Palace fans when he added, “There’s an element of it I don’t understand, it’s come out of the blue. It’s like no other industry.
“We’ll be judged on what we do next.”
The club’s official statement said: “Crystal Palace Football Club can confirm that first team manager Dougie Freedman has joined Bolton Wanderers. The Board of the Club would like to put on record their thanks to Dougie for all his efforts over the past couple of years and their disappointment over the events of the past few days. The search for a replacement starts immediately.
“The team at tonight’s game against Barnsley will be taken by Assistant Manager Lennie Lawrence and first team coach Curtis Fleming.”
As Inside Croydon reported this morning, there is widespread speculation that Steve Coppell has been asked to return to Selhurst Park in a senior capacity.
- Did fans’ lack of support earlier in the season persuade Freedman to look elsewhere? This was our take on the manager’s position six weeks ago: Be careful what you wish for in football’s sack race
- Inside Croydon: For comment and analysis about Croydon, from inside Croydon
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