Crystal Palace make Marc Guehi transfer statement as ‘crazy’ outgoings mean decision is made..
Crystal Palace face up to UEFA’s huge decision which will decide their fate on Monday, with chairman Steve Parrish admitting that England international Marc Guehi – who captained the side to FA Cup and Community Shield triumphs in the last three months – could be sold before the transfer deadline..
Marc Guehi will be sold in this transfer window if the price is right, Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish has admitted. And the Selhurst Park club’s co-owner warned there will be limited spending by the FA Cup winners because of the “crazy” money they still owe for previous signings.
The England defender, 25, has entered the final year of his contract and the new Community Shield winners risk losing the club captain for nothing next year. Palace turned down a third bid of £70m from Newcastle last summer after the £30m sale of Joachim Anderson to Fulham – and Parish revealed there was another offer for Guehi in the January window.
The Carabao Cup winners and Premier League champions Liverpool are both still interested in Guehi. And his former club – and new FIFA Club World Cup winners – Chelsea need another defender after Levi Colwill underwent ACL surgery. Speaking in the Wembley mixed zone after the penalties win over Liverpool, Parish was asked if Guehi will be sold this month if an acceptable offer is made.
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“Yes, yes,” said the Palace boss. “Of course, for players of that calibre to leave on a free, it is a problem for a football club. There is no doubt about it unfortunately.
“Joachim went and we couldn’t afford to lose both of them. We then had another bid in January but that was a difficult decision as well. We will just have to see what happens. It needs a new contract or a conclusion of some kind.”
Palace still want £50m for Guehi while FA Cup final hero Eberechi Eze also remains a target for Arsenal. Parish added: “In the end, people trade players, That is what football clubs do. Of course, if you don’t care about tomorrow ever and put it all off, we are a fantastic team. If we had four more players, I don’t know what we could achieve.
Manager Oliver Glasner has expressed his frustration at the slow transfer activity this summer with only two new signings – including a back-up goalkeeper on a free transfer – made so far.
“I admire Oliver so much,” Parish added. “He just wants to win trophies. I don’t mind that he wants to do that and I think someone at the football club should do that. I have other things to worry about and the Premier League is crazy, what people spend. The financial jeopardy.
“So I have to look at everything else but don’t think for a minute I want to do anything other than support them and do everything I can.
“At some points you have to recycle your squad. We will do everything we can in the next few weeks to give us the best chance we can. It is a really tough one. We will do everything we can in the next few weeks to give ourselves the best chance. I am aware we are in four competitions. But at the end of the day, the money we have is not infinite.”
Palace will learn the verdict of their appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland on Monday after UEFA last month demoted them from the Europa League to the Conference League this season.
“It will be good to put it behind us but I don’t want that to come across as any kind of fatalism,” Parish added. “I am determined that we will get the right outcome. If we don’t get the right outcome, we will have to look at steps after that.
“But even more after Friday, I do not understand how we cannot be in that competition. It is up to the judges to decide, we trust them. Let’s see.”
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