Marc Guehi and Oliver Glasner: How Crystal Palace pair’s departure happened

Glasner gathered all his players and staff at the club’s training ground just before noon on Friday.

The arrivals did not shock the players; They must all have been living under a rock not to know their manager was leaving in the summer.

But the timing got tongues wagging. Why now?

Before it was announced to the players, captain Guehi had confirmed his intention to join Manchester City.

Glasner is one of Guehi’s biggest supporters and will continue to be so even after they part ways.

It was always the intention of the Austrian player and his captain to leave at the end of the season, but with Guehi’s departure coming to the fore, it is perhaps no surprise that he too has decided to confirm his intention to leave.

But during the summer months, cracks began to emerge between Glasner and the Palace hierarchy.

The Austrian coach expressed his disappointment with the lack of transfer revenues. The club signed only reserve left-back Borna Sosa and number two goalkeeper Walter Benitez before the final week, when the season had already started.

They targeted Sporting defender Ousmane Diomande but the club never came close to agreeing a deal.

Glasner has been steadfast in his belief that the club must capitalize on last season’s stirring FA Cup victory by building a squad capable of moving up the Premier League but also capable of meeting the demands of playing European football for the first time.

Palace eventually signed Yeremy Pino in a deal worth £26 million, with youngsters Christantus Uche and Jaydee Canvot also arriving.

However, Uche and Canvot barely played; Glasner relied heavily on the same squad as last season with minimal rotation; a squad that lost key player Eberechi Eze to Arsenal.

Palace started the season brightly with many pushing for a place in the Champions League.

But Glasner feared trouble was on the way. The coach is adept at balancing domestic and European football; after all, he won the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022.

Some people behind the scenes believe that concerns about rotating the team are a clear indication of his intention not to renew his contract.

“It’s like he’s taking his meat out of the players because he knows he’s leaving anyway,” a source said.

In the end, Glasner’s concerns paid off. They are now nine games without a win and their last defeat came against non-league Macclesfield last Saturday, ending their efforts to retain the FA Cup in embarrassing fashion.

They are currently 13th in the Premier League with this weekend’s game at Sunderland.

Preventing Guehi from joining Liverpool in the summer in a deal worth £35 million was something of a victory for Glasner; Glasner was adamant from the start that the defender should not be sold, even if it meant the club would lose him for nothing this summer.

Despite this being denied by Glasner, some sources have stated that Palace would immediately consider the 51-year-old’s position if they sell Guehi in the summer.

Even after Glasner informed Parish of his intention to resign over dinner in October, you sensed that Palace had not given up hope of somehow persuading their manager to make a U-turn.

For example, it is said that Brennan Johnson’s club record signing was made possible by the Austrian player.

Likewise, Parish is understood to have played a key role in securing Johnson’s delivery to the team for his agent in early January; many interpreted this as an attempt to convince Glasner that the club was prioritizing strengthening the squad with his stamp on it.

However, Palace are actively working to identify potential candidates to replace Glasner in the summer.