Crystal Palace’s Oliver Glasner has bought back the ‘happy everything’ factor – but will it last in the 2024/25 Premier League season? |Football News

When Crystal Palace is at its best, Selhurst Park comes alive. The stands cheered, Dave Clark Five’s “Glad All Over” was sung like the national anthem, and fans pledged their allegiance to the Eagles.

This has become the norm in the final quarter of the 2023/24 season – a welcome break from the previous months.

As Crystal Palace edged into a relegation battle, fans were once again disappointed with the direction of the club under Roy Hodgson. Despite producing some of the brightest young talent, Selhurst Park still lacks the spark of creativity that people crave.

Hogson was then replaced by Austrian Oliver Glasner. “He’s an underrated coach, he’s a tactical planner, he has his own ideas,” said Philipp Hinze of Sky Germany.

The Europa League-winning coach took a while to settle in, needing time to implement his way of working and adapt to a new league – something football managers rarely get the chance to do.

But once Glasner and his players hit it off, things got exciting.

Glasner Palace upgrade

They are unbeaten in their last seven games, winning six of them, including games against Liverpool and Manchester United. Only Fulham took points from them in the 1-1 draw.

Overall, Glasner managed 13 Premier League games and lost just three. Even in defeats or draws, there were signs of improvement – a brace against Manchester City, for example, which is no mean feat.

Glasner has scored more goals, created more big chances and kept the same number of clean sheets in his 13 games for Palace compared to his previous 25 games.

The Eagles’ offense was filled with intent, confidence and creativity, leading to a plethora of goals. During that time, even without the injured Mark Guerhy, only four goals were conceded.

As you can see from the comparable heat map, Crystal Palace have certainly gone further in the shadows of the opposition half under Glasner.

Matetta emerges as big winner from Glasner’s arrival

Jean-Philippe Mateta is one of the players who has benefited greatly from Glasner’s arrival.

It’s hard to believe he has been at the club since January 2021. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.

But last season, he started 25 games in the Premier League, and the arrival of Oliver Glasner allowed Matata to enter the form.

In those 13 games, he has scored more league goals (13) than Roy Hodgson (5 in 35 games) or Patrick Vieira (6 in 44 games). Want more. That included back-to-back doubles and a hat-trick against Aston Villa on the final day.

He also continued his form into the summer, playing for France at the 2024 Olympics and scoring five goals as Thierry Henry’s side won the silver medal. It perfectly illustrates how confidence drives sports.

Glasner agreed, saying in April: “When forwards score goals and have confidence, their decision-making is better.

“He gets chances in every game and makes great runs. He puts in a lot and works very hard. 10 times he made runs without getting the ball, but he did it [anyway]. This helps the team create space and create opportunities.

Returning to Crystal Palace after such a successful summer should be fantastic for fans and staff alike. The experience of being coached by one of the greatest strikers in Premier League history is sure to be an added bonus too.

Sunday, August 18, 1:00 pm

Starts at 2:00 pm

How will the ins and outs affect the new season?

Palace will not want the season to end. But nothing lasts forever, and the question now is can the Eagles continue their form into the 2024/25 season?

This has been a summer full of changes. Not only is this the first transfer window for Glasner to shape his side, some of his star players have also been linked with exits.

Michael Olise has left, joining Bayern Munich for £50.8 million. Glasner’s success so far has largely depended on the fitness and availability of Olise and Eberechi Eze.

Both have been plagued by injuries over the past few years and were sidelined towards the end of Hodgson’s tenure, but they were a formidable duo who led Palace to an unbeaten run. Their link-up play behind Mateta allowed Palace to play with fluidity and creativity.

Now, Glasner must find a way to replace not only Aulis, but Eze as well. While there are no concrete links just yet, it wouldn’t be surprising if the England midfielder finds himself on the hook for a big-money move this summer.

Geshe’s outstanding performance in the 2024 European Cup also attracted the attention of Newcastle and Liverpool. Another player who thrived at Crystal Palace, there’s no denying he will be a huge loss, but the team have proven they can survive without him.

Due to a knee injury, Gersh only made three appearances under Glasner, starting only in the final game of the season. Daniel Munoz and Joachim Andersson form an excellent centre-back partnership and this summer saw the signing of Chady Riad from Barcelona for £14m.

But Anderson is also subject to offers from Fulham – where he spent the 2020/21 season on loan – and losing two first-choice centre-backs in one window would be a tall order.

Then there’s Jordan Ayew. He has often been the team’s silent anchor, but has also been linked with a move away. Crystal Palace have brought in Ismaila Sarr, who could limit Ayew’s minutes on the right.

Sarr is not a direct replacement for Olise, although that is not to say that he cannot bring other qualities, but the club is keen to bring in another winger. One of them could be Wilfried Zaha, who only left Crystal Palace for Galatasaray last summer.

While it will certainly evoke nostalgia, Crystal Palace’s transfer strategy has long been about finding young talent and developing them into top players – and we’ve seen it in action time and time again.

The most recent example is Adam Wharton, whose meteoric rise has seen him named in England’s Euro 2024 squad. He only joined Palace from Blackburn Rovers in the January transfer window, but his intelligence and technical ability quickly made him a must-start player.

There are other clubs interested in the 20-year-old this summer, although Crystal Palace is arguably the best place for a player of his age group to develop further.

Glasner hopes that, despite losing some real talent, he still has the right players on his team to execute the game plan that worked so well late last season.

There are still a few weeks until the window closes. It would be successful to retain some key talent while also making other trades to strengthen the team.

But ultimately, it’s a window that could go a long way toward Palace’s success this season.

The Eagles must now continue to have more success

Fans are cautiously optimistic that the “happy everything” factor can continue. They have a smart and dynamic manager at the helm and have taken steps to replace players who have left or are about to leave the club.

Glasner will be well aware of the transfer cycle at a club like Crystal Palace and he has proven his credentials as a coach. Now we’ll see if he can make the same adjustments in the Premier League and, most importantly, help the Eagles go further.

Any relegation battle is out of the question. Perhaps a more realistic goal for the Eagles should be to make significant progress in the cup competitions, where they have had some success in recent years.

It’s been a successful pre-season, but the real proof will come on Sunday, when Crystal Palace kick off the 2024/25 Premier League season with a trip to Brentford, live sky sports.