Imagine, for a second that you are the supporter of a relegation-threatened side who have just hired a new coach on a short-term deal until the end of the current campaign.
Two months later, he is celebrating his fifth win in eight league games, scoring 15 goals along the way, while putting any lingering relegation fears to bed. Be honest, you’d be pretty keen to see him plant his signature on a new, long-term deal, right?
But reports from The Sun suggesting that Roy Hodgson could be rewarded for an outstanding run of form with a contract at Crystal Palace beyond the current campaign have elicited more frowns than smiles in South London.
Yes, Hodgson has Palace playing the kind of free-flowing, attacking football the fans have long been pining for. Yes, The Eagles would be fifth if the season had started when Hodgson replaced Patrick Vieira at Selhurst Park.
But Hodgson, come August, will need a birthday cake the size of Crystal Palace itself if he is to fit every single one of those 76 candles upon it.
Is Roy Hodgson staying at Crystal Palace?
What’s more, Palace brought an end to Hodgson’s first spell at the club only two years ago, deciding that the time was right to move on from a 70-something head coach.
As impressive as his return to the dugout has been, appointing the Premier League’s oldest-ever manager for a further 12 months is understandably being viewed by many of a Palace persuasion as a step backwards. It certainly doesn’t scream ‘ambition’. Especially on the back of reports suggesting that The Eagles were considering Lille’s Paulo Fonseca while holding talks with Feyenoord’s Eredivisie-winning head coach Arne Slot (De Telegraaf).
The optics, let’s say, aren’t great.
An opportunity missed?
Fonseca and Slot, 25 and 29 years Hodgson’s junior, both look like ideal candidates to build upon the foundations the former England boss has laid down in recent weeks. Fonseca, during spells at Roma, Lille, Shakhtar Donetsk and Porto, has played some of the most aesthetically-pleasing football in Europe.
Ditto Slot at Feyenoord. The 44-year-old’s high-pressing, possession-heavy style has drawn comparisons with Pep Guardiola and Erik ten Hag as Feyenoord claimed their first Eredivisie title in six years. It is not hard to imagine Ebere Eze, Michael Olise, Marc Guehi, Cheick Doucoure and potentially even Jesuran Rak-Sakyi thriving under a Fonseca or a Slot at Selhurst Park.
What’s more, if Hodgson is retained on a 12-month deal, there is a very real chance that neither Fonseca nor Slot will be available by the time the summer of 2024 rolls around.
Tottenham Hotspur are big fans of former AZ Alkmaar boss Slot (Telegraph). Leeds United, meanwhile, tried to hire the 44-year-old in February, and may come calling again with their own veteran boss Sam Allardyce – only at Elland Road until the end of the month.
Crystal Palace have taken a few big steps in the right direction since Hodgson’s return. But few clubs in the Premier League have had quite so many false dawns as the Eagles in recent times, and extending the 75-year-old’s contract has the makings of another.
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