Football writer Alex Keble assesses each Premier League club and their prospects for the 2024/25 season.
Crystal Palace
What Oliver Glasner achieved between February and May last season, after taking charge as manager, was frankly ridiculous. Crystal Palace were propelled to their highest ever Premier League finish thanks to Glasner’s impressive tactical acumen, although it must be said he benefited significantly from Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise returning from injury.
There are high hopes he can build on that initial success – but there’s a problem. Olise has been sold to Bayern Munich. Vultures are circling Eze and Jean-Philippe Mateta. Whether they can hold onto those two will define their season, and maybe the entire Glasner era.
Performance last season
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 |
West Ham
WHU
|
38 | -14 | 52 |
| 10 |
Crystal Palace
CRY
|
38 | -1 | 49 |
| 11 |
Brighton
BHA
|
38 | -7 | 48 |
| 12 |
Bournemouth
BOU
|
38 | -13 | 48 |
FA Cup: Third round
EFL Cup: Third round
Last five seasons
| Season | League position |
|---|---|
| 2019/20 | 14th |
| 2020/21 | 14th |
| 2021/22 | 12th |
| 2022/23 | 11th |
| 2023/24 | 10th |
Best Premier League finish
Tenth: 2014/15; 2023/24
See: More about Palace's history
Season aims
Glasner’s tactical revolution was done on the fly midway through last season and he will be grateful for a full summer to bed in the new philosophy. The goal is to consolidate; to complete the transformation and record another top-10 finish, which would be a superb achievement should Palace lose any more of their star forwards.
Key transfers
Daichi Kamada, a skilful attacker who racked up the assists under Glasner at Eintracht Frankfurt, has been signed to provide more creativity between the lines, while Ismaila Sarr arrives from Marseille as a direct Olise replacement. That’s it for now, which is just fine. Palace fans are holding their breath, hoping for no more movement.
Palace's key transfers so far
| Player | Transfer Type | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Jairo Riedewald |  Released |
- |
| James Tomkins | Released |
- |
| Chadi Riad |  Transfer In |
Real Betis |
| Daichi Kamada | Transfer In |
Lazio |
| Michael Olise | Transfer Out |
Bayern Munich |
| Ismaila Sarr | Transfer In |
Marseille |
See: Clubs' summer 2024 transfers
Tactics
Glasner is a tactician schooled in the modern German style. His pressing structure is intense and laser-focused in its attention, the aim being to win the ball in dangerous areas and release the front three into space.
It’s an explosive idea and, clearly, it has worked. But can Glasner’s Palace kick on without Olise and without the element of surprise?
Pre-season results and fixtures
6 July Crystal Palace beat Sutton United Report
19 July Crystal Palace 1-1 Charlton Report
27 July Crawley Town 3-6 Crystal Palace Details
1 Aug Crystal Palace 3-1 Wolves Report
4 Aug Crystal Palace 3-1 West Ham Report
11 Aug v Nantes (H) Details
Best XI (3-4-2-1)
Dean Henderson; Nathaniel Clyne, Joachim Andersen, Chris Richards; Daniel Munoz, Will Hughes, Adam Wharton, Tyrick Mitchell; Eberechi Eze, Daichi Kamada; Jean-Philippe Mateta
Opening PL fixtures
Kits
See: More details at Crystal Palace’s online store
