February 27 2013

Stephen Browett

Crystal Palace chief Steve Browett reckons this could be the best opportunity of the team winning promotion in years.

Next season up to 10 Championship sides will have parachute payments from their time in the Premier League, giving them a big financial advantage over their rivals.

While having extra cash does not guarantee success, co-chairman Browett has urged the fourth-placed Eagles to grab their chance while they can as things may be different next term.

"I don’t think Crystal Palace will have a better chance of getting promoted to the Premier League than we do right now for quite a while," he told the Croydon Guardian.

"Next season there could be a record number of teams with parachute payments in the Championship and one parachute payment is better than a Championship club's total income.

"So, on paper, it is looking really hard but, as we have seen, Wolves, Bolton and Blackburn have got massive incomes and haven’t done that well.

"It is about having a team. We could go out there like other clubs have done and buy 11 individuals for a lot of money and think that expenditure will automatically breed success.

"But the examples of Swansea, Norwich and Blackpool prove it is more important to have a rounded team that have played together for a while."