Beach boy Parish misses out on Silva
CRYSTAL PALACE chairman Steve Parish missed out on his first choice of manager to replace Sam Allardyce partly by going on holiday to Majorca.
Marco Silva, who made such an impression in charge of relegated Hull City in the second half of last season, was top of Palace’s wanted list — but was also being chased by other Premier League clubs. Silva was in deep negotiations with Watford when he received a phone call from Parish asking him not to speak to anyone else until he returned from his Spanish holiday.
Silva is known to have been unimpressed with Parish’s approach, reasoning that if the Palace chief really wanted him he could easily have returned from Majorca to make his case. It helped Silva conclude he was making the right decision by taking charge at Watford.
The Palace camp claim Parish, who was in Majorca with Wilfried Zaha and his agent Will Salthouse agreeing Zaha’s new contract, offered to fly out Silva to the Spanish island for talks but Watford had set a deadline on their offer.
ENGLAND central defender Chris Smalling has chosen to change football agents at a time when his future at Manchester United is in doubt.
It is claimed Smalling has switched management representatives from Wasserman Media Group to James Featherstone’s Omnisports to give him more confidence about his advisers during an unsettled period.
The United player has two years left on his contract at Old Trafford but his first-team chances could be limited next season with manager Jose Mourinho having agreed to sign Benfica centre back Victor Lindelof. However, if United want to sell him, Smalling will not be short of Premier League offers with West Ham, West Bromwich and Leicester all chasing centre halves.
TOTTENHAM’S sale of individual season-ticket holder seats for £50 from decommissioned White Hart Lane even includes a cut-price deal for those damaged during the removal process. One Spurs fan was informed: ‘We have successfully and safely removed half of your seat. If you still wish to purchase this, we are very happy to offer this seat at a reduced price of £35 to reflect the condition.’ This must be the worst Spurs deal since they signed Roberto Soldado.