FIVE Year Plan fanzine editor ROBERT SUTHERLAND isn't convinced by the appointment of Neil Warnock - but hopes the fans now get behind the team and move on...
AND so it came to pass – a week and a half of speculation ended on Thursday – with the announcement by the club (via the medium of its main sponsor's twitter account) that Neil Warnock had won the sprint to the management line by a photo finish.
As a supporter, I've accepted the news but with a sense of tired resignation – the departure of Tony Pulis was a shock, the appointment of Warnock doesn't seem entirely convincing. Especially when we consider the unfortunate interlude that was Malky Mackay's would-be appointment and the subsequent fiasco that followed.
What is clear is that Warnock knows Palace. He enjoyed his time with the club previously, almost took the club to the play-off finals, introduced a variety of youth players to the side and is a manager about whom plenty of players have had positive things to say.
Yet, amid all this, there are questions as to whether he really is the right man for the job. The oft-touted issue is that he has never kept a side in the Premier League. Given that Palace have had plenty attempts to do so themselves and only managed it last season, perhaps it would be a bit rich for us to chastise his record.
However, his record at QPR wasn't the most astounding and, while Warnock will complain about Sheffield United's relegation due to Carlos Tevez, their demise was also subject to their poor run of form.
The contrarian in me thinks that Warnock has some unfinished business at the club. Having taken us to the play-offs and with the Eagles looking like a side capable of challenging for promotion once more, the rug was pulled from under the manager's feet by the financial mess that had been created around him.
Some fans will say that he walked out in the club's time of need; a fair response would be that he did so under considerable pressure from the club's administrators, who were concerned by his wages. There were also suggestions that he had been looking for an exit earlier on – the counter-argument would be that, had the club been settled, he would have been more inclined to stay.
Either way, the time has come for the club to once again pull itself together following the most tumultuous spell since our supporters fought for the club's future outside Lloyd's Bank in London. Few gave Palace a chance of even existing at that stage, so the fear of relegation is insignificant in comparison. But one thing is clear – that spirit, the atmosphere of positivity which has carried us through relegation battles, promotions and subsequent Premier League safety – that spirit is needed now more than ever.
There is talk now that we'll see some signings come in, and by the time you read this we may well have one or two already. The news cycle has been focused (with a hint of negativity) at how Palace could possibly recover from Pulis' exit and the upheaval it caused – the club now have a chance to change the narrative and give news organisations and (crucially) supporters, something positive to focus their attention on.
I'll be at Newcastle on Saturday, and I can't wait to give our players the support they deserve. Whether I'm happy about the new manager or not.
