I don't honestly think the real issue here is whether he can tear himself away from Bournemouth. Obviously he's got a massive loyalty but he also seems very ambitious and intelligent, and he must be aware that everyone has him down as the 'next big thing' as far as management is concerned. He's had other offers, and by this point is must be a question not of whether he'll leave but when, and where he'll go.

I think the bigger issue for him is assessing the level of risk involved here. If, lord forbid, he came to Palace and things didn't go so well for the remainder of the season, then he'd really have tarnished his golden record. Nobody had any expectations of him at Bournemouth and he's worked wonders, but now he's got to work out whether he thinks he can do the same thing at Palace, two leagues higher (from where Bournemouth were, obviously not where they are now), and picking things up halfway through the season, mid-transfer window.

The answer to that in my mind is that he definitely can - we've got a good bunch of players who were unlucky in my mind for a long time at the beginning of the season and have only recently started putting in really poor performances. Our position in the table doesn't reflect the team, it just reflects the way we've been playing and a lack of stability. What I'm basically saying is that he's probably spending this weekend getting to know a bit about the players we have at Palace, and working out what he'd do and where he thinks he could take us. I have him down as a guy who knows the game inside out so I think we need to give him a bit more credit. Love for Dorset hasn't got Bournemouth where they are! It's a gamble for him but I think it would pay off. He doesn't need to come to Palace now, he's got decades of management ahead of him and he's got a lot more to lose than he has to gain. Hence the difficult decision.

Edited by RJ19 (09 Jan 2011 2.02am)

Not gonna lie Howe is better off staying with Bournemouth he's obviously got everything going for him there a good set of players even though they all get snapped up from him. If he pulled off another promotion it would be a miracle. Would he really want to leave that for palace? we are playing with no belief need a few signings in and could possibly go down at the end of the season? Gut feeling he stays with Bournemouth, and also he says he loves Bournemouth because he is being nice back to the club not doing a Mr dowie and going straight to our rivals!

I can't believe there's already a small Eddie Howe backlash simmering away.

What's wrong with him taking a little bit of time (Oh my god THRRRREEEE WHOLE DAYS!) to make what is a huge decision for him?

It's not just a change of job, it's a complete upheaval of him/his family & he needs to assess whether he considers himself ready and good enough to make such a big change worthwhile. Not just from his point of view, but from our point of view too. He doesn't want to do us any diservice by making a rash decision when he's not ready.

There's nothing wrong with him having such a huge emotional connection to Bournemouth, the vast majority of his professional career (playing & managing) has been there & he's currently part of a huge love-in with both fans and the players- this is something that is all too rare in football, and how many times do we all whinge about people in football "leaving/only being in it for the money" or "having no loyalty"... and now some of you are having a dig at him for not jumping off his Bournemouth bandwagon like s*** off a shovel.

Let's hope he mulls it over and comes to a decision that is best suited for all concerned:
-We could get one of the brightest young managers in football
-Eddie gets a chance to better himself at a (slightly) bigger club
-Bournemouth get a nice lump of compensation money.

(come to Palace Eddie)

-and to those all still harping on for Coppell, what par of 'retired from football management' don't you understand?