Crystal Palace struggled to reach Patrick Vieira on Thursday – perhaps he knew what was to come.
Just hours after Wednesday night’s defeat to Brighton, the initial silence from Vieira was deafening. To be honest, it was also quite irritating.
The initial plan was for Vieira to be in charge of Arsenal on Sunday before discussing his future after the international break.
Those talks would likely have led to his dismissal anyway. Those in power at Selhurst Park have been very disappointed with the team’s performance over the past few weeks.
No wins in 2023 – a streak of 12 games – is at the end of every club.
Patrick Viira was sacked from his role as Crystal Palace manager on Friday morning
The former midfielder felt he was unsupported by the club – who was annoyed by the manager’s lack of communication skills
But it wasn’t like Palace made up their minds after losing at Amex. Chairman Steve Parish wanted an opportunity to gauge where Vieira’s head was.
PATRICK VIEIRA AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE
Ordered: 2021
Games managed: 74
Wins: 22
Draw: 25
Losses: 27
Goals for: 84
Goals conceded: 87
Win Rate: 29.73%
He wanted to feel if the fire was still burning. However, it is understood there were difficulties actually communicating with Vieira on Thursday as the club attempted to discuss a way forward.
Matters only came to a head during a phone call on Friday morning – around 7 a.m. – when Vieira made his way to the training ground.
As you can imagine, a lengthy and open discussion followed.
Vieira believes he hasn’t just been backed on the transfer market.
In contrast, Palace have been angered in recent weeks by what they see as Vieira’s unwillingness to communicate.
Troubles after the 1-1 draw at Brentford, where Palace conceded a late equalizer in February, and then the 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa earlier this month helped reinforce the growing disconnect between manager and boardroom.
Vieira is believed to be disappointed that the club weren’t more accommodating with the club offering him a new contract. His contract expired at the end of the next season.
Sportsmail have been told the club are preparing to start talks about a deal after the World Cup.
But Palace’s form has since meant those discussions were impossible. For weeks there have been deep concerns about Vieira’s failing morale.
Palace chairman Steve Parish was keen to gauge whether Vieira is still intellectually engaged
The club’s terrible form hit him hard. He was weak – losing to arch-rivals Brighton was another heavy blow to his spirits.
Vieira is a deep thinker, Palace wanted to have a clearer idea of what was nagging at him. It is now clear that Palace believed Vieira’s fire had been put out for the fight.
On Friday morning, all parties agreed that this once budding relationship had no future and Vieira was fired.
The Frenchman is a laid-back guy – and he has tried to implement a relaxed vibe at the club’s Beckenham headquarters. But like it or not, Palace are in the middle of a relegation battle; This is no time for relaxation.
Indeed, there was dismay that the culture Vieira has tried to foster is not suited to the dynamism of a Palace club.
Sometimes house truths are necessary. Sometimes just nonsense is enough. There wasn’t much of that under Vieira. Of course, Vieira has experienced first-hand what a relaxed environment can do.
There were fears that Vieira and his coaching staff lacked the experience to stop the side from falling
Arsene Wenger actively avoided confrontation with his players. But it’s easy to get cold when you have Vieira, Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry, Robert Pires and others on your team. Clubs like Palace don’t have that luxury.
In fact, Vieira’s decision to fire assistant coach Shaun Derry was seen as a mistake by those behind the scenes. It is important to point out that Derry was not a Vieira appointment.
Derry, a former Palace player, is a straight forward person. A thoroughly friendly and approachable guy off the pitch – but combative when it comes to his football.
He would engage in difficult conversations with players who he felt were not doing their part.
But Vieira did not appreciate his intense nature. In short: there was a personality clash and Viera told Derry his services were no longer needed about six weeks ago.
Vieira took a relaxed approach but there was a feeling the players lacked discipline, while his decision to sack Shaun Derry (R) was seen as a mistake
Don’t be surprised if Derry returns to the club in the post-Vieira era.
Vieira believed his own team of Osian Roberts, Kristian Wilson and Saïd Aïgoun would be enough.
But with each disappointing result, fears grew that his coaching staff lacked the experience to stem the side’s alarming descent.
Derry is also at the beginning of his coaching career – but there is a view his inclination to call it that would have benefited the team. It must also be stressed that Vieira was never the first choice for the Palace job.
The club, for one reason or another, failed to get a number of managers including Lucien Favre, Nuno Espirito Santo and Steve Cooper to replace Roy Hodgson at the start of last season.
Roy Hodgson is now seen as a contender to come in and mobilize the struggling squad
Vieira’s first season in charge was a success. An FA Cup semi-final coupled with what appeared to be a more attractive style of play created a positive vibe.
But there were already concerns about Vieira’s plan last season. Palace were mechanical under Hodgson – not necessarily pleasing to the eye – but everyone knew their job and their teams had a clear pattern.
Under Vieira, Palace were more spontaneous, relying on the brilliance of their attacking players – namely Wilfried Zaha – to get results.
To be honest, there are many at Selhurst Park who still crave Hodgson’s regimented style of play.
Hodgson is retired – but available. It will be interesting to see where Palace go now.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-11871737/Patrick-Vieiras-relaxed-nature-Crystal-Palace-costly-sacked.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490 Patrick Vieira’s laid-back demeanor at Crystal Palace cost him before he was sacked
