Crystal Palace thrashed Fulham 3-0 to reach the FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley, with Oliver Glasner continuing to do a superb job at Selhurst Park that has seen him pick up admirers from both Bayern Munich and Red Bull Leipzig
No wonder Jurgen Klopp fancies having a bit of Oliver Glasner in Leipzig. No surprise either that Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish would much prefer the Austrian to sign a new contract to stay at Selhurst Park.
Parish has a growing number of assets being coveted by other clubs – and this was a day when Eberechi Eze demonstrated why Manchester City have been monitoring him with two quickfire flashes of brilliance to ensure that one end of Wembley will be filled by the Holmesdale Massive next month.
In the space of four first half-minutes, the England winger scored a sensational goal before setting up a routine finish for Ismaila Sarr with another dashing demonstration of quality.
Substitute Eddie Nketiah came on after the break to score Palace’s third goal – and wouldn’t it be ironic if he now ended up with a winners’ medal before the Arsenal team he left behind?
Marc Guehi would be playing for Newcastle had they offered enough money. Ruben Amorim reckons Jean-Philippe Mateta’s 6ft 4ins frame would fit a Manchester United shirt perfectly, while Adam Wharton is admired by most of the Premier League ’s top teams.
READ MORE: Eberechi Eze shows what he’s all about as Crystal Palace demolish Fulham to reach WembleyREAD MORE: Jean-Philippe Mateta’s ear protector gets mixed reviews as he makes comeback in Palace win
But Glasner is THE man in South East London. Bayern Munich were eyeing up the 50-year-old last summer only to have their £15million compensation offer laughed all the way back to Bavaria.
More recently, Klopp, the global head of football for the Red Bull brand who happens knows a thing or two about management, has been reportedly making noises about taking the coach who won the Europa League for Eintracht Frankfurt back to the Bundesliga.
There was even a nod to the way Klopp used to celebrate in front of Liverpool’s Kop when Glasner and his players took the acclaim of the travelling fans in the Putney End at the final whistle.
Glasner was coy on talking about the possibility of signing an extended deal with Palace in the build-up to a game that would define his team’s season.
But any talks are sure to include questions about how strong Parish’s resolve is to keep his club’s most prized players. Glasner’s hand will only be strengthened if he can become the first-ever Palace manager to win a trophy.
Crazy to think, then, that there were whispers back in October, after Palace had failed to win any of their first eight Premier League games, that Parish’s trigger finger was starting to itch.
Since then the Eagles have lost just five of 26 games in all competitions – and have won their last six games on the road. Now they’re on their way to Wembley. Only 45 clubs have won the FA Cup and the engravers are still yet to be troubled by either Fulham or Palace.
Fulham finished 12th in the old second division when they reached their one and only final 50 years ago. Bobby Moore was their captain, but even he couldn’t prevent West Ham prevailing in his last appearance below the Twin Towers. Palace lost both of their previous finals at the hands of Manchester United.
So don’t tell the fans who turned Craven Cottage into a cauldron that the absence of so many big clubs in this season’s quarter-finals has damaged the competition.
Black and white flags were waved furiously on three sides of the stadium, while Palace’s travelling supporters were hardly inconspicuous.
How the visitors had to dig in to withstand a furious onslaught by a side that still harbours serious ambitions of qualifying for Europe by maintaining their position in the Premier League’s top eight.
But Rodrigo Muniz and Andreas Pereira could not find a finish for Fulham’s best two chances before Palace got a big break when referee Darren England decided that Wharton’s petulant kick at Muniz didn’t carry enough malice to warrant a second yellow card. In such moments are FA Cup dreams made or broken.
Marco Silva will be hoping that he can revive his players for the challenge ahead – and he will have to. Next up for Fulham is Arsenal at the Emirates on Tuesday night, followed by Liverpool, Bournemouth and Chelsea.
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