One of Manchester United’s reported managerial targets should Ruben Amorim be sacked, Oliver Glasner, is in talks with Crystal Palace over a contract extension, chairman Steve Parish has said.
The Austrian’s reputation has soared in recent months having guided to a first-ever major trophy in May—Eberechi Eze’s goal enough to secure a 1–0 win over Manchester City in the FA Cup final—as well as victory in August’s Community Shield, which saw the Eagles down Premier League champions Liverpool on penalties.
Palace have also just enjoyed an unbeaten streak of 19 games across all competitions—a run that was dramatically ended by Jack Grealish and Everton just prior to the October international break.
It’s perhaps no surprise that Glasner’s work has attracted admirers from elsewhere, with Palace’s free-flowing style of play significantly contributing to their recent rise.
Man Utd have been linked, amid intense pressure on current boss Ruben Amorim, while Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich have also been touted as a potential landing spot—Glasner is no stranger to Germany after managing Eintracht Frankfurt and is well thought of after lifting the 2021–22 Europa League with the club.
But in an appearance on talkSPORT, Palace chairman Parish sought to clarify the club’s plans for Glasner, who is out of contract next summer, and stated that he’d “love” to keep the 51-year-old at Selhurst Park as talks have begun over an extension.
“We've had some early conversations,” he told talkSPORT. “We’d love to keep Oliver. We’re building something. I think for Oliver it’s about the conditions being right... it’s about everything being in a way that he enjoys his work and he finds the conditions favourable to achieve.
“Oliver wants to win things. If we can align those interests then hopefully we can make something happen.”
Man Utd Not Planning ‘Knee-Jerk’ Change of Manager
Whether or not United actually decide to replace Amorim remains to be seen. The Portuguese coach has had a volatile relationship with the media amid continued criticism of his tactics, but has always maintained that he won’t walk away from Old Trafford no matter how bad results get.
And even though minority United owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe would prefer to see the Red Devils winning, he recently said in an interview that he was committed to giving Amorim three years to turn the club around—citing the work done by Mikel Arteta at Arsenal as a potential reason to ignore somebody like Glasner in favour of keeping Amorim on.
“Ruben needs to demonstrate he is a great coach over three years,” Ratcliffe said. “Yes. That is where I would be. Three years. Because football is not overnight,” he continued when asked if Amorim would be given that amount of time. “It’s three years. You also look at Arteta at Arsenal. He had a miserable time over the first couple of years.
“We have to be patient. We have a long-term plan. It isn’t a light switch. You can’t run a club like Manchester United on knee-jerk reactions to some journalist who goes off on one every week.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Man Utd-Linked Manager in Talks to Extend Contract Elsewhere.
