Crystal Palace podcaster Dan Cook believes the Eagles’ decision not to continue talks with former Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo could be one that Palace look back on with fondness, as he believes numerous ‘red flags’ appeared during the discussion stages.
It was reported last week that Palace and Nuno were entering the final stages of negotiations as the south London club edged ever closer to sealing a replacement for Roy Hodgson.
However, on Wednesday morning, it emerged that talks between the parties had broken down in what seemed like the final stages.
Although Cook admitted his frustrations as a result of the deal falling through, he believes there have been some signs that could’ve foreshadowed how the appointment would have turned out.
Speaking on the HLTCO podcast, Cook had this to say:
“Whilst I would have loved Nuno Espirito Santo to be Palace manager, there are a certain number of red flags raised by all of this.
“If, indeed, he did fail to live up to the expectations upon taking the Crystal Palace job and we were to sack him, the compensation involved in replacing not just him, but all of the staff as well, who would inevitably walk away with Nuno, would be significant for us at a time when [the pandemic] has ravaged the planet, at a time when Wilfried Zaha remains unhappy to be on Crystal Palace’s books, when Ebere Eze is out until at least Christmas.
“It just feels as though we need a steady hand and someone that actually does want to stabilise the football club and isn’t going to be moving the goalposts at the final moment with these demands that have been made – nothing like public for the first or two or three weeks in negotiations, and it does feel a little bit out of left-field, in that sense.”
TIF Thoughts on Crystal Palace and Nuno’s talks breaking down…
Cook makes a credible point, although Nuno could have been a fantastic appointment in the long term for Crystal Palace. If there were wholesale changes that he was demanding it probably could have caused problems for Palace further down the line if the appointment failed.
Nuno has shown he can be a fantastic manager at the top end of the Premier League, having guided Wolves to European football for the first time since 1980.
However, as the future of many Crystal Palace players is in the balance, with many out of contract this summer, there could be a huge financial sum to re-sign those current players back up. A more stable appointment could therefore be a better option for Crystal Palace as they to ride out the pandemic with as little financial damage as possible.