Crystal Palace find themselves in a precarious position just two months into the new Premier League season. The South London club sits 18th in the table, winless through their first eight matches, and the pressure is mounting on manager Oliver Glasner to rapidly reverse their fortunes or face the sack.
Palace’s Historically Poor Start
Monday night’s 1-0 defeat away to Nottingham Forest marked an ignominious milestone for the Eagles – it was the first time since the 1992-93 season that they’ve failed to register a single victory in their opening eight top-flight games. Palace have scored a league-low five goals and already find themselves five points adrift of safety.
The loss to Forest, who sat dead last entering the match, was emblematic of Palace’s struggles. An egregious error by goalkeeper Dean Henderson, mishandling a routine Chris Wood shot, gifted the newly-promoted side the winning goal and only compounded the frustration around Selhurst Park.
Echoes of De Boer’s Ill-Fated Reign
This horrific start has unwelcome echoes of the Frank De Boer era in SE25. The Dutchman lasted just four league games in 2017, presiding over four defeats and failing to see his side score a single goal before being unceremoniously dismissed. Roy Hodgson ultimately took over and guided Palace to an 11th place finish, but not before seven straight losses to open the campaign.
“It’s tough at the moment, to be honest. But nobody is blaming anybody. Very often we are in the final third and making the wrong decisions. This is due to a lack of confidence. We are humans. It’s time for hugging the players, not for kicking them.”
– Oliver Glasner on Crystal Palace’s current form.
While Glasner, who replaced the retiring Hodgson in February, will hope to be afforded more time than De Boer, there is a growing sense that he must oversee a rapid uptick in performances and results over the coming weeks to save his job. Palace chairman Steve Parish witnessed the Forest debacle in person and is said to be weighing up the Austrian’s future.
Flexibility Concerns and Misfiring Forwards
Concerns are mounting over Glasner’s perceived tactical inflexibility and stubborn adherence to a 3-4-2-1 system that doesn’t seem to be yielding dividends. The former Eintracht Frankfurt boss appears reluctant to deviate from the formation despite his side’s impotence in the final third.
Compounding matters, big summer signing Daichi Kamada has yet to fill the creative void left by the departure of Michael Olise to Bayern Munich. The Japanese international, who starred under Glasner at Frankfurt, is Palace’s top earner but has struggled to settle, leaving the Eagles badly missing Olise’s inventiveness and end product.
A Critical Run of Fixtures Ahead
Glasner is staring down a potentially season-defining stretch of matches sandwiched around the final international break before the World Cup:
- Tottenham (H) – Oct 26
- Aston Villa (A) – Carabao Cup – Oct 29
- Wolves (A) – Nov 2
- Fulham (H) – Nov 9
The visit of Spurs this Sunday already feels like a must-win, although Palace’s record against the traditional “Big Six” offers scant encouragement – just one victory in 19 attempts since the start of last season. Their last win over Tottenham in any competition came in January 2019 in the FA Cup.
Should Glasner fail to oversee a significant improvement, the two-week World Cup hiatus could represent an opportune moment for Parish to make a change. Out-of-work managers like Graham Potter, David Moyes, and even Gareth Southgate have been mooted as potential successors.
Wharton Injury Worry
As if Palace’s predicament wasn’t dire enough, there are now fitness doubts over influential young midfielder Adam Wharton. The 20-year-old, an ever-present starter since breaking into the first XI, has been managing a persistent groin problem all season and was an unused substitute against Forest as a result.
“It is a decision we will take together,” Glasner said of Wharton’s injury. “We are talking with him and, if we have to do it, finding the right moment. Or, [on] the other side, his body will tell us. If the pain gets worse, then we have to do it. At the moment, it’s OK.”
– Glasner on Adam Wharton’s fitness status
Losing the England U21 international for any extended period would be a hammer blow, both in a footballing and symbolic sense. Wharton has been one of the lone bright spots in a wretched season and Palace can ill-afford to be without his energy and creativity in the center of the park.
Eight games into the season, Palace already find themselves starring into the abyss. They are winless, goalless, and increasingly hopeless. The international break granted Glasner a stay of execution but a failure to dramatically reverse the team’s fortunes before the World Cup will surely spell the end of his brief tenure. The Eagles are in desperate need of a new flight path.
