Crystal Palace rocked by ‘very surprising’ departure – ‘this is a big loss’
Crystal Palace announced the departure of sporting director Dougie Freedman earlier this week after a long history at the club.
Freedman played and was manager at Selhurst Park before returning as transfer chief in August 2017.
He is taking a role Saudi Second Division side Al-Diriyah, who are owned by the country’s Public Investment Fund (PIF).
Freedman, who had previously been linked with moves to Man United and Newcastle, was responsible for signing the likes of Michael Olise, Eberechi Eze and Marc Guehi at Palace.
Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – claimed the transfer guru is joining a “non-league setup” in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, Wyness insisted he was “very surprised” to see Freedman depart Selhurst Park for the Middle East.
Crystal Palace sit 12th in the Premier League this term under Oliver Glasner and are in the FA Cup quarter-final.
Wyness told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “It is a big loss.
“Freedman has been back for eight years, and some of the names he’s brought in are so important.
“Eze, Olise, Guehi, Wharton – some top players. Palace have had a great reputation for bringing players through.
| Position | Team | Played | Points | GD |
| 10 | Bournemouth | 29 | 44 | 12 |
| 11 | Brentford | 29 | 41 | 5 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 28 | 39 | 3 |
| 13 | Man United | 29 | 37 | -3 |
| 14 | Tottenham | 29 | 34 | 12 |
“I was very, very surprised when I saw the news.
“It’s Al-Diriyah that he’s going to. I’ve actually been to the club and seen the ground. Believe me, it’s almost a non-league set-up at the moment. It’s planned to be one of the biggest developments in Riyadh.
“There’s a huge amount of money being thrown in.
“I also understand it will be a multi-sport project. I think they’ve done a great job getting him.
“He’s a very good operator, and I think he’ll do a great job there. It’s a big project and I think he’s right to take it on.
“Things can be difficult in Saudi, because you don’t always get to make all the decisions yourself. Whether he can adapt to that, we’ll have to wait and see.”
Liverpool in pole position to sign Crystal Palace star
Meanwhile, Football Insider has revealed (17 March) that Liverpool are in pole position to sign Crystal Palace star Guehi in the upcoming summer transfer window.
Arne Slot’s side are searching for a new centre-back with Virgil van Dijk out of contract at Anfield in June.
Meanwhile, Liverpool have yet to reach an agreement with Ibrahima Konate over a new contract.
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