De Boer defiant but owners meet to decide his fate
Loss to Burnley is worst league start in 93 years No goals and no points in opening four games
Crystal Palace were deciding whether to sack manager Frank de Boer last night after suffering a fourth straight Premier League defeat.
The club owners were holding talks after Palace lost 1-0 at Burnley to become the first top-flight club not to gain a point or score a goal in 93 years (since Preston North End in 1924) in the opening four games.
De Boer’s future was already hanging in the balance. This fixture had been deemed a “must-win” by club sources – although while the Dutchman admitted the club had a decision to make, he denied he had been given such a stark ultimatum.
Against yet another loss, however, Palace have to consider that this was an improved performance with – crucially – De Boer having listened to the concerns raised with him over his team selection and tactics.
Palace had a more familiar feel to them and were unfortunate to lose
– a point conceded by Burnley manager Sean Dyche. But it would be a surprise for De Boer to survive, given how close he was to being sacked during the international break after Palace’s shocking home defeat by Swansea City.
He clung on then, partly because Palace wanted to get the transfer window out of the way and because he promised changes.
Palace now have a home fixture against Southampton before a daunting sequence of matches in which they face Manchester City and Manchester United away, and are then at home to Chelsea. They fear another relegation battle.
An obvious contingency plan is in place for the club’s newly appointed sporting director, Dougie Freedman, to take control of the first team should De Boer be sacked. A decision is expected within the next 48 hours.
De Boer, who succeeded Sam Allardyce only in June, signing a three-year deal, would suffer the ignominy of being the shortest-serving Premier League manager if he was dismissed.
The former Ajax and Inter Milan coach was defiant, however. Asked whether he feared the worst over his future, De Boer said: “I don’t know. I just focus on what I can control and my staff, the players, and keep thinking about Southampton from today. That is all I can do. What other people think, they have to decide, but when I’m still the manager of Palace I will give 100 per cent.”
Had he been given an ultimatum by the board, whose chairman, Steve Parish, was at Turf Moor to watch this fixture?
“No, no,” De Boer said. “I have very good contact with the chairman and the board. Of course we are very critical to each other (sic), but always when we leave the door we have only one opinion and that is that we are still with the project and we know where we come from and what we want to achieve.
“I’m convinced we are going to achieve it.”
It remains to be seen whether his employers are convinced, although there will be encouragement in this performance and De Boer’s apparent willingness to listen to the concerns that have been raised with him.
Still, Palace have now lost at home against Huddersfield Town and Swansea, and away to Liverpool and Burnley – they have played better away from home – with an aggregate score of 7-0 and with a squad of players who achieved wins against Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea under Allardyce last season.
In fairness, De Boer is without probably Palace’s three best players. Wilfried Zaha and on-loan Ruben Loftus-cheek are injured and Mamadou Sakho, such a crucial figure last season on loan from Liverpool, has only just been signed and is not yet deemed fit enough.
“I am very disappointed about the result, very disappointed,” De Boer said.
“I am not disappointed about how we played. I think it is a fantastic starting point. I will sign for every game if we create that amount of chances against any opponent. You will get your points and get what you deserve. Today we didn’t get what we deserved.”
Was it the kind of performance that would buy him more time, though?
“I don’t know, they have to decide,” De Boer said. “I think this is a good starting point and this is what I want to see from any team that I manage. I want them to play with courage and maybe we didn’t start with it, but after the goal we showed what we can do. That gives me a lot of hope for the future.”
Dyche – who had been a candidate to take over from Allardyce at Selhurst Park in the summer – said that Palace “looked a more familiar side on paper”, which had worried him.
“Changing the style of play can be tricky,” Dyche said. “I would have preferred it to be the 3-5-2 they are still learning. We have had to work very hard.”
Dyche revealed he had told De Boer that Palace had been the “better side”.
Whether that is enough to save him remains to be seen.