Oliver Glasner has revealed that Crystal Palace’s huge bid to replace Marc Guehi was rejected on deadline day, capping a chaotic and ultimately frustrating January transfer window for the south London club.
Despite the Eagles’ leadership agreeing to spend a lot of money near the end of the deadline, Glasner acknowledged that the Eagles’ attempts to acquire a new center back were rebuffed by the club, which did not want to sell a valuable asset so close to the 7 p.m. deadline.
Glassner reveals Crystal Palace’s deadline day drama
The Austrian manager has often complained about the club’s recruitment strategy, but admitted that while the intentions were good, the timing was fatal.
Glassner said (quoted via Standard)
“I’ve learned to accept the situation. Of course my wish, and everyone’s wish at the club, would have been for JP (Mateta) to get what he wanted, to get Jorgen (Strand Larsen) and Dwight McNeil in the building, to get Mark Gehi’s replacement in the building.”
“This is something that everyone was working on until the last seconds. At the end, the clubs tried everything with huge offers and huge bids to replace Marc Gehi, but each club said on deadline day that they would not sell.”
“Credit to the club for spending so much money on Strand Larsen without getting a penny on JP.
“On the other hand, McNeil was the last player we thought we could finally agree on, but in the last minutes the terms of the contract changed again and the deal fell through. I was expecting him and had plans for him in training the next day.”
Glasner was not happy with Crystal Palace releasing Marc Gehi midway through the season.
The main cause of Glasner’s dissatisfaction was the departure midway through the season of club captain Marc Guehi, who originally joined Manchester City in a deal worth £20 million.
The move left a gaping hole in a defense that had already been weakened by the sale of Eberechi Eze to Arsenal in the summer.
Glasner previously described the release of his captain just 24 hours before a Premier League game as an “abandonment”, claiming the team lacked the depth needed to compete at the highest level.
Failure to secure a direct replacement on deadline day leaves Palace at a disadvantage for the remainder of the campaign, despite interest from Lyon’s Ruben Kluivert and Club Brugge’s Joel Ordonez.
Glasner plans to leave club at the end of this season
Tensions over transfer policy ultimately led to a decisive break. Glasner has confirmed he will leave Selhurst Park this summer in search of a “new challenge” after his contract expires.
Despite leading Palace to a historic FA Cup victory in 2025, his departure is inevitable after disagreements between the manager and the board over the timing of player sales and arrivals.
Manchester United are also among the clubs interested in Glasner, but given Michael Carrick’s perfect start as caretaker manager, they may end up sticking with the club legend.
