For all Liverpool’s big deals in the summer transfer window, one of the defining signing might even up being the one that didn’t go through, with a move for Crystal Palace centre half Marc Guehi dragging out all summer and in the end falling apart after the player had already undergone his medical.
Without a suitable replacement having been signed, his departure would have left Palace in a difficult spot—and as a result manager Oliver Glasner threatened to walk over the deal. That led to owner Steve Parish backing out of the deal. If Palace can stay in the mix for the European places as a result, they will likely consider it a win on balance.
“It was a difficult decision,” Parish said when asked about the failed transfer this week by TalkSport. “It’s as simple as that. These things are never black and white. I decided in the end that, based on the advice that I got and with what I think, that we would have a better season if we kept Marc.
“If you look at it rationally, if you look at what the worth is of each place in the Premier League, the fact that we’re in the Conference League for the first time in our history, this is a fairly unusual set of circumstances in which to keep a player. If we were fighting between 10th and 14th then probably we would have said, right, we should take the money.”
A loss to Everton heading into the international break dropped Palace to sixth after being in the top four until then to start the year, but any European qualification—in addition to a decent showing in the Conference League this season—likely us worth more to Palace than the fee they stood to gain.
It does seem certain Guehi won’t fetch them a fee now, with the player considered a certainty to depart on a free transfer at the end of the season. That they will also lose manager Glasner at the end of the season is considered to be nearly as certain. So far at least, it does seem as if Parish and Palace are winning their deadline day Guehi gamble.