Unwell: Roy Hodgson missed today’s press conference
Might the Glaziers be about to get Glasner as their latest manager?
Speculation over Roy Hodgson’s future at Crystal Palace cranked up a gear when the veteran manager failed to appear for a scheduled press conference at lunchtime today, with some fans and fanzines speculating that his absence was because he had already been sacked.
Hodgson, in his second spell in charge of his boyhood club, has become the focus of increasing disquiet from some fans after a run of just four wins in 18 league games, including a painful drubbing against rivals Brighton and Monday night’s 3-1 defeat at Selhurst Park to Chelsea, after the Eagles had been 1-0 up at half-time.
“Unfortunately, today’s press conference will no longer take place as scheduled as Roy Hodgson was taken ill during this morning’s training session,” a statement from the club said just minutes before the 1pm scheduled briefing.
Hodgson was reported to have needed medical attention midway through the session at Palace’s Beckenham training ground, and was taken to hospital for treatment.
But as Ed Aarons, the well-connected Guardian football writer, put it: “Crystal Palace are set to sack Roy Hodgson and have lined up Oliver Glasner to replace him, with the Austrian understood to be close to agreeing a deal to take over after advanced talks on Thursday.”
Some of Hodgson’s recent comments, following dull and uninspiring performances, have irked the Palace faithful, although many fans acknowledge that their manager had been ill-served by the board which had let him down during last summer’s transfer window, leaving a tissue-thin squad.
Painful sight: the banner at the away end during Palace’s 5-0 defeat at Arsenal last month
And when injuries hit the likes of Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze, Hodgson found no way to replace the inspired stars of his side.
At 76 years old, Hodgson is the oldest manager in Premier League history. A Selhurst Park apprentice in his teens, as a manager his 48-year career has seen him in charge at Internazionale, Liverpool and Fulham, as well as Switzerland, UAE and then England boss from 2012 to 2016.
Hodgson was brought back to Palace by chairman Steve Parish in March 2023 as a stop-gap replacement after the sacking of Patrick Vieira, who had suffered a disappointing run of results of his own. After guiding the side to Premier League safety, and with Parish and the board ultimately unable to identify a suitable replacement, Hodgson was given a one-year contract at the club he previously managed from September 2017 to May 2021.
The simmering hostility of some disappointed fans has clearly taken a toll on the dignified and loyal Hodgson, who was visibly shaken when on the touchline during last month’s 5-0 defeat at title-chasers Arsenal, as he was seen to read a banner that was as critical of the board as it was of him: “Wasted potential on and off the pitch. Weak decisions taking us backward.”
It led Hodgson to call this “the toughest period of my career for one reason, and that is that the fans have turned so much against us”.
Parish’s pick?: Oliver Glasner, said to be in talks about the Palace job
Parish is understood to have considered Colin Cooper, the much-respected Nottingham Forest manager who was sacked late last year and Kieran McKenna, who has impressed with his handling of Ipswich’s young side, currently fourth in the Championship.
But this week it has been reported that Parish has approached Glasner, who has been out of work since leaving Eintracht Frankfurt at the end of last season.
“Glasner is understood to have held talks with Parish and the Palace sporting director, Dougie Freedman, and is believed to be closing in on an agreement worth about £4.5million a season,” the Grauniad reports.
Glasner, 49, won the Europa League in 2022 with Eintracht, after having coached previously at Wolfsburg and Linz and having been assistant manager at Red Bull Salzburg.
Palace sit 15th in the Premier League on 24 points, five points clear of the relegation zone, with 14 games of the league season remaining.
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