It ain’t Patrick’s Day
There’s no luck of the Irish on St. Patrick’s Day for Patrick Vieira. He woke up to the news that he would no longer take charge of Crystal Palace and becomes the first manager to be sacked on Ireland’s patron saint day.
Crystal Palace U21 coach and Irishman Paddy McCarthy will take charge until an appointment is made.
The Sports Gazette looks at the bookie’s favourites and gives them a rating out of 10 on how their managerial style may fit with the players at Crystal Palace’s disposal.
Rafa Benitez
The odds-on favourite according to Bet Fair is Rafa Benitez at 10/3.
Benitez is a very experienced Premier League manager who has managed Liverpool, Chelsea, Newcastle, and most recently Everton in England’s top-flight division.
The Spanish manager is known for his defensive style of play and for firming up a previously leaky defence.
Crystal Palace has traditionally been a solid defensive unit, but with club chairman Steve Parish appointing Vieira back in the summer of 2021, it signalled an attempt to change the mentality of the club.
6/10
Ralph Hassenhuttl
The next best-priced manager to succeed Vieira is Ralph Hassenhuttl, at 5/1. The former Southampton manager was sacked from his position back in November 2022, after a poor 4-1 home defeat to high-flying Newcastle United.
Hassenhuttl derives from the Red Bull model of high pressing. During his final stages as manager of the ‘Saints’, Hassenhuttl mixed and matched his formation, switching regularly between a back three and a back four.
However, the German national side last year had a habit of creating attacking chances, which is desperately what Palace have been lacking this term.
Southampton managed 21.42 shot-creating actions per 90 compared to Palace’s 17.41 shot-creating actions this season.
7/10
Nuno Espirito Santo
The next best odds are found with former Wolves and Tottenham manager Nuno Espirito Santo at 6/1.
Espirito Santo is currently the manager of the Saudi Arabian-based side Al-Ittihad having been sacked early on in his Tottenham tenure.
Like Benitez, Espirito Santo is known for his defensive style of play which disgruntled the Tottenham fans due to his lack of creativity upfront.
This is an issue that has been apparent in Espirito’s Premier League managerial career as his sides have only scored 144 goals in 124 matches, which is an average of 1.16 goals per game.
5/10
Marcelo Bielsa
The fourth favourite for the job is former Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa, coming in at 15/2.
Bielsa’s sides are a very entertaining watch for the neutral, with his high energy style of play an exciting watch for all fans of the sport.
His most successful season with the Yorkshire-based club was a ninth place with his side scoring 62 goals in the 38-game season.
Goals are something that palace has been lacking this season with the South London side only able to hit the back of the net 21 times in their 27 games so far this season.
However, Bielsa’s Leeds side suffered from second-season syndrome as they were loitering around the relegation zone, eventually leading to Bielsa losing his job in February 2022.
9/10
Carlos Corberán
The final possible choice to take the Crystal Palace hot seat is the current West Bromwich Albion manager Carlos Corberán coming in at 9/1.
The Spanish manager has had a successful time managing in England, albeit in the Championship.
Corberán took Huddersfield Town to the Championship Play-off final last season, losing out in the final to Nottingham Forest.
He then took the surprising decision to resign from his position as Huddersfield boss, weeks before the start of this season.
Soon after his resignation, he took over the position of West Bromwich Albion manager, taking the club from 23rd when he took over to 8th place with 9 games to go in the season.
7/10
