Reasonable thought but if he is sold do we really want him back merely to rehabilitate and get back up to speed?

If the rumour that he is autistic is true, then this move could well backfire as one of the usual main requirements of dealing with autism is stability & routine.

It could well be that he didn't do so well at his former clubs because of the way he was handled or treated, but was better 'managed' at Palace with a proper understanding of his 'needs'. If this were so, a change of routine and attitude at Chelsea (or wherever) could well set him back - especially if he is also having to cope with recovery from a fairly serious injury.

Just a thought...but time will tell.

A stairway to Heaven and a Highway to Hell give some indication of expected traffic numbers

But didn't he also make claims of aspirations to play at the very top and a career path to support that trajectory? That would support his heart not being at Palace.

There's also the addition of a release clause to his contract which wouldn't be there were there not an expectation of a 'bigger' club coming for him? That would support him never wanting to stay here and expecting to move on to 'bigger' things.

Didn't he also delete all Palace stuff off his Instagram the other day? That would support any notion of little sentiment towards the club and perhaps even insult.

Has there not been involvement in the courting process with Chelsea, would have to take two to tango? If there is any wrongdoing here, whether legally found to be or not, that would support an arrogance to slightly break the rules to get what he wanted, a move away from Palace.

Wouldn't fit the narrative you've based around a singular statement. Factual circumstances in somebody's life do not bear any influence on what they are told or not either. So that's not a 'fact' in your argument.

That is all in response of course if you took my post literally and did not read it as intended. I could be wrong on all the above however - perhaps we insisted on a release cause against his wishes, he might have said he was happy here and not looking to move on any time soon, the whole Chelsea thing might come as a shock to him and perhaps there is an innocent explanation to him deleting all the Palace content on his social media?

I'm not claiming any of this as fact and if incorrect I am happy to be presented with the evidence.

Now Zaha's got a bit of green grass ahead of him here... and finds Ambrose... not a bad effort!!!!

There is little doubt Chelsea have been less than straight with Palace. It’s now clear the OPs question has been answered, Olise had a £35 mill get out clause . Some on here made the point early in the saga, if it was only that amount why wasn’t the deal done it was a give away at that money. Well Chelsea why wasn’t it done.? We did the deal early with Reading, Liverpool went straight in for Mac Allister, most of these clauses are opened early in a window, and so they should be if the selling club is not going to be hung on a string. This deal seems to be a bit like Bairstows stumping by Australia, legal but leaves a bad taste.

Only watched first half of it so far but thank for posting Beger, great vid.

Essentially, yes MO had no intention of staying ("stepping stone" ), backed himself to play at highest level and we were unlikely to ever have signed him without release clause, as others have suggested.

Also a suggestion from HLTCO that we will now be in for a 'higher calibre' of player than the likes of CHO and Gray we've been linked with. I really do fail to believe this which is based on nothing but anxiety for me. Let's hope so nonetheless.

Edited by Nicholas91 (16 Aug 2023 12.37pm)

Now Zaha's got a bit of green grass ahead of him here... and finds Ambrose... not a bad effort!!!!

The rumour mill states that we insisted that full payment be made up front whereas Chelsea wanted terms so that they had cash left over to buy a few more players