If we're talking bizarre, how about Paul Hart!

He was happy to come in as a caretaker 10 years ago and saved us from relegation. In view of what happened next we should have kept him, but that's another story.

Usually when a club changes manager to avoid relegation, they opt for a more pragmatic boss than the outgoing one. We aren't the only ones to turn to Pulis, Allardyce and in our case Hodgson to keep us up the boring way. Apart from Harry Redknapp, I can't think of many relegation/emergency appointments who tried to get their new team to stay up by playing better football. Certainly not in the recent past anyway.

The irony here is that all the apparent candidates for the job, apart from Dyche who absolutely isn't coming mid season, play fairly open football.

If Parish did sack Roy it would only be because he, like some on here, feels that relegation will follow otherwise. To address that fear by appointing a positive, attack minded, risk accepting coach would be fairly unique in recent times I think?

I cant think of a similar strategy being applied elsewhere with success, but perhaps someone can think of an example?

I think Roy's done a great job and it's very difficult from the outside to gauge motivation levels among the ageing squad even without the complication of contracts running out etc.

However, it's not inconceivable after three and a half years that his coaching and words aren't reaching out to the players as much as they were. It then becomes more about a fresh voice and ideas trying to turn things and get a bit more out of the players IMO rather than playing style although this also a gamble and carries it's own risks

I really hope we win tomorrow and against Fulham but it's hard to be confident based on recent evidence.

In saying the above I haven't got a scooby who to get in or whether anyone decent would stake their reputation on the current group.

Edited by Rachid Rachid Rachid (21 Feb 2021 7.04pm)

Considering the speculation and the silence from Parish it appears something is in the works.

It does feel like his last season, he doesn't look like he's enjoying it.

'Who are you and how did you get in here? I'm a locksmith. And, I'm a locksmith.' (Leslie Nielsen)

thanks google

This was once a quality forum....

Perhaps, I just think that if none of this were true they would have clamped down on the media.

But like you say I could be wrong.

Here's to some wins.

'Who are you and how did you get in here? I'm a locksmith. And, I'm a locksmith.' (Leslie Nielsen)

We have to be so careful about changing the manager at this critical stage of the season, generally fans hounding managers out does not work and usually results in relegation and a downward spiral to league 1 or beyond. The facts are that Roy has kept us up for the past four years with the club spending very little on improving the team and in some cases it has extended contracts of players who have lost any ability they may have had or who are permanently injured. None of these problems are Roy's fault he has just got on with the job using the limited tools he has when other would have walked away a long while ago. The fallacy that having a class one academy is going to solve our problems is just not true, the facts are that one percent of potential players who enter at age 9 will then go on to make it to any professional level in football and again only 180 of the 1.5million playing organised youth football will go on make a career in football. Like it or not we have to invest substantially in this squad if we want to keep in the PL in the years ahead. this means the Americans will have to invest more of their huge wealth otherwise I cannot see, when the time comes that any half decent Manager would want a job that is doomed to failure.

I wonder what our Prem legacy would be if we get relegated? Lots of clubs have a shiny new ground, or stand, to half-fill after time in the Prem. I guess ours would have the be the academy, which we would no-doubt need to rely on more heavily if we went down.

Seriously, who would be better than Eddie Howe and likely to come to Palace? I don’t think Nigel Pearson is the answer, for example.

Thats probably why we won't get Eddie Howe or even anyone decent at the moment as apart from tactical and motivation factor there hands will be tied with this ageing group of players with the threat of relagation looming ? Its a case of wait and see for managerial candidates as well as fans .