Oliver Glasner to take a final call on his Crystal Palace tenure as a concrete solution delayed by packed fixture schedule.
Oliver Glasner has stated that Marc Guéhi may be sold this month if his “threshold” is reached and anticipates making a decision in the upcoming weeks over whether to sign a new contract with Crystal Palace.
The early favourite to succeed Ruben Amorim at Manchester United permanently is Glasner, according to the bookmakers. The ambitious 51-year-old Austrian is reportedly keen to joining United or another major club when his contract expires this summer.
This season, Glasner had conversations with Steve Parish, the chair of Palace, about a new contract. However, due to European commitments, the FA Cup winners have been playing two games a week since the end of August, putting the talks on hold. More talks are expected after Palace begin their FA Cup defence against Macclesfield on Saturday but offered no guarantees he will stay.
“I think in the next weeks we will intensify the talks,” Glasner said. “Everyone gets three days off after Macclesfield and then we have to target four regular weeks and in those weeks we will intensify the talks and I expect to find a final decision.”
Asked whether the uncertainty over his future was a distraction, he said: “I don’t really care about it, because I can’t affect it if there are rumours, speculation. That’s why I don’t want to respond to it, because I can sign today, or a player can sign today, a contract extension and leave in summer … The length of a contract in these times doesn’t say anything about your future.”
Although Guéhi’s contract expires in the summer, Palace is rumoured to want £40 million for its captain, and Manchester City is considering making a bid for him. Glasner acknowledged that he had no control over the England defender’s future.
“Everybody wants that he plays for Crystal Palace, signs a new contract and stays here for ever,” he said.
“On the other side, there’s the situation that the contract ends in the summer and if somebody is coming, there will be a moment when the club says: ‘Now the financial issue is more important than the sport issue.’ We have to do it and try to get the best. That’s why I’m always saying: ‘I don’t know.’ Because this is different.
“There will be a threshold where the club has to say [sell] … If the player says: ‘I want to leave’ and the money is above the threshold, it will happen. I’m not so naive not to know that if a massive offer comes from City and Marc wants to do it, it will happen.”