- Crystal Palace searching for Oliver Glasner successor
- Frank Lampard is on the list
- Difficulties in appointing Coventry City boss
Crystal Palace’s search for an Oliver Glasner replacement has led them to Coventry City’s Frank Lampard. The Premier League icon is on the Eagles’ managerial shortlist.
BBC Sport‘s Sami Mokbel claims that Lampard has key admirers within the boardroom at Selhurst Park. The former Chelsea and Everton boss is believed to be fully aware of Palace’s interest.
Lampard has overseen Coventry’s rise and return to the Premier League. He guided the Sky Blues to the EFL Championship title this season.
Palace’s problem with appointing Lampard
However, despite mutual awareness and genuine admiration from the Eagles’ hierarchy, a deal is far from straightforward. The biggest issue doesn’t stem from tactical disagreements or his demands, but rather Lampard’s current contractual situation.
Lampard currently has 12 months left on his deal with Coventry. Because he is firmly under contract, prying him away from the CBS Arena is not a simple case of offering him a new project.
Palace would be required to pay a substantial buyout. Releasing him from his Coventry contract is likely to cost a significant sum, and in an era where top-flight clubs must tread incredibly carefully around Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), every penny counts.
Paying a hefty compensation fee for a manager before even considering backroom staff overhauls or summer transfer budgets creates a massive financial stumbling block for the Palace board.
It’s worth pointing out that the time the club paid compensation for a manager came back in January 2015. The Eagles handed £3.5 million to Newcastle United for Alan Pardew.
Where Palace stand
Steve Parish and the Palace higher-ups are left with a difficult balancing act. On the one hand, Lampard is a manager with experience managing in England and the Premier League.
On the other hand, the financial realities of modern football mean that paying millions just to get a manager through the door reduces Palace’s flexibility in the upcoming transfer window.
While the mutual interest is very real, Palace are quite rightly hesitating. Instead, their focus seems to be on Pierre Sage and they are set to hold talks with the Lens boss over succeeding Glasner.
