If recent reports are to be believed, Crystal Palace are targeting to bring in Manchester City’s star full-back Gael Clichy this summer, as Sam Allardyce continue to strengthen the Eagles at the back. With Manchester City eyeing a major overhaul at the end of the season as Pep Guardiola plans to inject fresh blood to his side, the Frenchman’s future at Etihad is in darkness and Allardyce is willing to gamble on it.
The former England manager has done brilliantly in not only dragging the Eagles out of the relegation zone but also instilling a conviction among the players, which was absent in Alan Pardew’s reign. Palace, now, looks similar to Allardyce’s team of Bolton Wanderers, Sunderland and West Ham United. With an aggressive approach, the side looks full of confidence and gets the job done most of the time. It was evident in their wins over Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool both at home and away from it.
And a lot of its credit goes to Eagles’ unshakeable defence. After a nightmarish first half of the season, where Pardew saw the side conceding three to five goals against Swansea City, Burnley, Leicester City, and Liverpool, the inclusion of Jefferey Schlupp, Patrick Van Aanholt and Mamadou Sakho has improved them immensely.
And getting Gael Clichy from City will only strengthen them. The 31-year-old French international is a Premier League veteran, who has played with and against some of the best at the topmost level and would bring huge experience with him. He is in English football for 14 years now since Arsene Wenger brought him to Arsenal back in 2003 from Ligue 1 side Cannes.
Over this span, Clichy has won three Premier League titles, one FA Cup and two League Cups. A left-back by nature, Clichy is known for his disciplined play. A solid player on that left corner of the pitch, he has excelled in stopping the fiercest of wingers like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Arjen Robben and more.
Since moving to City back in 2011, he has remained the first choice under all three managers- Roberto Mancini, Manuel Pellegrini and Pep Guardiola. However, it was Wenger who managed to bring out the best out of him, getting two goals and 11 assists.
But Clichy, like Pablo Zabaleta and Aleksandar Kolarov this season, has found it hard to adapt to Guardiola’s new blueprint. And his age would also be a big concern for the Spanish manager, who prefers to execute his philosophy through young players. Although leaving Champions League football for a midtable club seems unlikely, Allardyce could be an influencing factor.
