Roy Hodgson Under Pressure: Who Could be Next?
Crystal Palace fell to a 4-1 demolition in their derby clash with Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, leaving Roy Hodgson’s job under heavy scrutiny. The Eagles currently sit 14th in the Premier League with just 24 points from 23 games.
That leaves Hodgson’s side just four points above the relegation zone, with Nottingham Forest, Luton Town and Brentford all having games in hand. Just two wins in their last 14 across all competitions have led to protests at recent games regarding the management of the club.
There are a number of managers linked with a potential move to the London club and today we’re going to be rating each option.
Graham Potter
As a former rival to Crystal Palace, the idea of Graham Potter taking over may come as a surprise to some. But after a disastrous stint at Chelsea, the 48-year-old could be set to make a return to the Premier League.
Potter worked miracles during his time on the South coast with Brighton, guiding them to three successive record-breaking points tallies before sending them on the way to their first ever European campaign.
However, Potter’s magic didn’t seem to work the same way at Chelsea. By the end of his time at the club, he had a win percentage of just 37% with just 12 wins in 31 games.
But Palace could be a decent fit for Potter with plenty of young talent like Michael Olise, Eberechi Eze and Marc Guehi. Potter would definitely fancy his chances at getting this squad playing a much better brand of football and increasing their current points income.
Rating- 8/10
Steve Cooper
Cooper is yet to find a job since his departure from Nottingham Forest back in December 2023. A run of just one win in 13 led to his sacking from the club and being replaced by Nuno Espirito Santo.
Yet it’s undeniable that Cooper done a brilliant job for the majority of his time at Forest and he kept the backing of the fans right up until the day he left. Cooper took over at Forest in September 2021, with the club sitting bottom of the EFL Championship table. Just eight months later, he had led the club to Premier League promotion with a Play-Off final win over Huddersfield.
Cooper remains the bookies’ favourite to land the job- should Hodgson be given his marching orders by Steve Parish.
Rating- 7/10
Jose Mourinho
On the face of it this would seemly hugely unrealistic, but it’s perhaps not as far-fetched as some may think. Mourinho has recently departed AS Roma and has since revealed his desire to return to the Premier League- with Manchester United his favoured destination.
However, Erik Ten Hag still seems to have the backing of the United boardroom, so a move to another Premier League club could be on the cards for Mourinho.
Speaking back in 2007 as Inter Milan boss, Mourinho said: “London is perfect. My family is happy living here. If it is not working at Chelsea, then Crystal Palace or somebody else.”
More recently in 2014, Mourinho revealed: “They [Palace fans] are noisy, they support their team, they put pressure on Âopponents and the referee. But that’s nice, so I’m happy to go to Crystal Palace.”
A potential return to the Premier League would be box office for the whole of the league and Mourinho could make a brilliant partnership alongside the Palace supporters.
Rating- 9/10
