Crystal Palace desperately trying to convince ‘unrealistic’ manager to replace Glasner

Crystal Palace have identified their front-runner in their search to replace Oliver Glasner, with the Austrian set to leave the club at the end of the season.

The era of Glasner is coming to an end.

The Premier League season is drawing to a close and Glasner’s reign at Selhurst Park is drawing to a close, with just one game left until the Europa Conference League final against Rayo Vallecano, but the manager insists he has no intention of making any major rotations in his squad.

Mr. Glasner said: “I watched Vallecano in Valencia on Thursday, so I was traveling a lot, so I spent many hours on the plane and in the hotel thinking about it. I’d like to stop talking about it.”

“So we won’t be making too many rotations. Yeah, we’ll probably make more substitutions earlier, probably after 60 or 70 minutes at the latest, maybe one or two at half-time if possible, but nothing else.”

Of course, the 51-year-old will want to finish the game in the best possible way at home, but doing so could derail Arsenal’s Premier League title ambitions when Mikel Arteta’s side travel to Selhurst Park on the final day.

Glasner confirmed his departure in January, but Steve Parish is yet to find a replacement despite identifying a number of targets, including AFC Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola and Fulham boss Marco Silva.

Update from Iraora to Crystal Palace

There is another update on Palace’s signing of Iraola, with Football Insider reporting that Crystal Palace have identified the Bournemouth manager as their priority target and are desperately trying to convince him to move to Selhurst Park.

Chelsea were also keen to sign a Spaniard, but the arrival of Xabi Alonso has cleared Palace’s path somewhat, and winning the Europa Conference League will improve their chances even further.

Journalist Pete O’Rourke added: “Palace are very keen to win the race for Iraola and are also trying to persuade him to move to Selhurst Park.

“He is a top manager and I have no doubt he will be in great demand in the summer thanks to his achievements at Bournemouth.”

It has been a fantastic season for Bournemouth, who could qualify for the Champions League if they finish well, and Iraola has been praised by scout Matthew Avery for his style of play.

So while Glasner’s departure would be sad, Iraola, who prefers a 4-2-3-1 formation, could be an ideal replacement.

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