Palace pulls off a coup to keep Marc Guehi despite record offer
Crystal Palace star defender Marc Guehi is remaining with the club after a lengthy period of uncertainty. Newcastle had been pursuing a deal to sign the England international for much of August. In fact, the Magpies even submitted four separate proposals to Crystal Palace regarding the center-back. The most recent offer was reportedly in the neighborhood of $85 million.
If accepted by the South London side, it would have broken their record sale that was only just set in July. Palace previously sold star winger Michael Olise to Bayern Munich earlier in the summer for around $65 million. A 2019 deal to send Aaron Wan-Bissaka to Manchester United also nearly reached this sum as well.
Nevertheless, Palace officials remained adamant that they would not let go of Guehi for less than $91 million. The highly-rated defender previously joined the Eagles from Chelsea in 2021 for a fee of $25 million. During his time with Palace, Guehi has established himself as one of the top young center-backs in the entire Premier League.
Eagles manager thanks ownership for not selling star
Palace manager Oliver Glasner confirmed that his star defender would not be on the move on Friday. “It was never really in doubt,” Glasner told reporters in a press conference. “Congratulations to Crystal Palace, to the chairman, to the owners, that they didn’t give in.”
Along with holding firm on a steep asking price for Guehi, Palace also did not want to lose another defender this summer. The Eagles recently sanctioned the sale of fellow starting center-back Joachim Andersen last week. The Denmark international joined Fulham in a deal worth up to $33 million. This represented the third-highest player sale by the club.
Glasner mentioned the loss of the Dane in the press conference. “Especially after the transfer of Joachim Andersen, it was very important that Marc stays,” continued the coach.
“Also thank you to Marc. We were always close and talked a lot. All of the rumors didn’t influence his performance, his mood, his professionalism. He always told me he is not pushing to leave Crystal Palace and for me, that is the most important thing.”
Palace brass backs Glasner by holding on to Guehi
Because of the big sales of Olise and Andersen, Palace did not necessarily need to continue selling stars. However, it is tough for any team in the club’s position to reject an $85 million offer for a player. This is especially the case as Eagles co-owner, John Textor, is desperately trying to sell his 45% stake in the team.
The move, or lack thereof, shows that Palace’s brass believes in Glasner moving forward. Team officials have every reason to support the manager. After all, the Austrian coach arrived in February as the club sat 15th in the Premier League standings. Glasner, however, was able to give his new players a boost and they eventually finished 10th in the table.
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The impressive end to the 2023/24 campaign included wins against Liverpool, Manchester United, Newcastle, and Aston Villa. In total, Palace scored 29 goals in their final 13 league matches of the season under Glasner. They have since struggled in their two opening games of the current campaign but will look to get back on track on Sunday against Chelsea.
Newcastle, on the other hand, is left disappointed that they could not secure Guehi. Magpies manager Eddie Howe even admitted on Friday that his current squad is weaker than it was a year ago.
Photo: IMAGO / Sebastian Frej