Why Crystal Palace fans have reason to get excited about potential new manager Lucien Favre
There’s been little to report on in the next Crystal Palace manager market since the club decided to pull the plug on appointing Nuno Santo due to the various demands he made.
The former Wolves boss then looked all set to become the next Everton manager, but that too appears to be off the cards, with ex-Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez now as short as 1/10 to switch his allegiance from red to blue.
But, back to Palace.
The likes of Steve Cooper, Frank Lampard, Sean Dyche, Eddie Howe, and Valerien Ismael have been stalwarts in the Eagles market since it was revealed a month ago that Roy Hodgson was leaving his post, however there’s been no new developments regarding this band of bosses.
The market does now have a new name in the mix though: Step forward Lucien Favre.
Favre can be found at 5/2 to take a seat in the Selhurst Park dugout, although you can still find him at 8/1 with Paddy Power.
The seasoned Swiss boss was recently linked with Celtic - who appointed Ange Postecoglou last week - while he’s a 50/1 outsider for Everton.
But, the 63-year-old could now be set for Crystal Palace, with journalist Alan Nixon reporting that the Premier League club are keen to open talks with the former Borussia Dortmund boss.
And if there’s any truth in the reports then Palace fans should get very excited.
Unlike other names that have been linked with succeeding Hodgson, Favre is out-of-work so no compensation would have to be paid for his services.
Although, if Chairman Steve Parish is serious he may need to act fast because Favre is also being linked with a move to Fenerbahce.
Favre has been in the managerial arena for nearly 30 years during which he’s overseen four Swiss teams, including FC Zurich, managed in Germany at Dortmund, Borussia Mönchengladbach, and Hertha BSC, while he also had a spell in France with Nice.
His material achievements include two Swiss Cups at Servette and Zürich - winning back-to-back league titles with the latter, who previously hadn’t won the league in 25 years - and Super Cup success at Dortmund.
He came agonisingly close to winning the Bundesliga at The BVB, whom he left with a record of 2.09 points per game; topping the tally of a certain Jürgen Klopp (1.91).
Favre has plenty of Europa League and Champions League experience under his belt, and in recent years has managed the likes of Marco Reus, Erling Haaland, and Jadon Sancho while he even squeezed the best out of Mario Balotelli, who blasted home 43 goals in two seasons playing under the Swiss boss.
Favre’s willingness to give chances to, and develop, young players makes him a very attractive option for Palace, whose academy has gained Category One status.
The club averaged the oldest starting-11 last season and will now undergo a period of transition as they look to utilise young talents from within.
Favre’s CV may be short of silverware but he has become known for making a significant impact at clubs.
In Germany he rejuvenated both Hertha and Gladbach, claiming impressive 4th place finishes at each, and then took the latter up a notch to 3rd spot and into the Champions League group stages; an incredible feat considering that they’d been fighting relegation at the time of his appointment.
At Nice he achieved another 3rd place finish, which is the club’s best standing since 1976.
In terms of his style of play, the flexible Favre has been known to employ a range of formations, but favours a possession-based approach which can produce a lorry load of goals. This was pertinent at Dortmund who accrued 80+ goals in both of his full league campaigns at the helm,
This will be music to the ears of many fans of Palace, who have scored just 31 and 41 goals in their last two league seasons and averaged 40.2% possession last term - only Newcastle and West Brom saw less of the ball.
For the time being, we’ll have to wait and see how the latest developments progress as Palace look to end their hunt for a new manager.
