John Heitinga in contention for Crystal Palace manager’s job as Tottenham exit confirmed
John Heitinga has emerged as a contender to potentially become the next permanent manager of Crystal Palace.
The Dutchman had been working at Tottenham as the assistant to Thomas Frank, but his departure from the North London outift have now been confirmed.
The Lilywhites have added three new coaches to their staff to work alongside interim manager Igor Tudor, and have simultaneously announced that a trio of Frank’s trusted allies have departed in Heitinga, Justin Cochrane and Chris Haslam.
Heitinga only joined the coaching ranks at Spurs on 15 January and has left after just over a month in the role, but he may not have to wait long to get his next opportunity in the Premier League.
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John Heitinga could be in line to replace Oliver Glasner at Crystal Palace
Oliver Glasner looks increasingly likely to potentially become the Premier League’s next managerial casualty, after Crystal Palace were held to a 1-1 draw away at Bosnian side Zrinjski Mostar on Thursday.
The Eagles failed to secure an advantage to take back for the second leg of the tie at Selhurst Park next week, in what served as another frustrating result in their UEFA Conference League campaign.
Pressure has been mounting on Glasner in recent weeks, and Heitinga’s departure from Tottenham has now seen him immediately catapulted into contention to replace the Austrian.
| Manager | Odds |
| Robbie Keane | 2/1 |
| Thomas Frank | 4/1 |
| Paddy McCarthy | 5/1 |
| Roger Schmidt | 8/1 |
| Ange Postecoglou | 12/1 |
The likes of Frank, Roger Schmidt, Robbie Keane and Gareth Southgate have all been linked with the position, while Heitinga is now being viewed as an outside candidate by the bookmakers.
One major bookmaker has priced the former Everton defender at odds of 25/1 to take the Palace job, which currently stands him below several other bosses.
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How good is Heitinga’s managerial record?
Premier League fans will be extremely familiar with Heitinga after he spent five years of his playing career in England, and he has since held coaching roles at both Liverpool and West Ham.
However, while the 42-year-old’s top-level coaching experience is already extensive, his level of experience as a manager is far more limited.
| Games | W | D | L | Win % |
| 15 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 33.33% |
Heitinga moved to take charge of his boyhood club Ajax last summer, but ultimately only made it through five months before he had his two-year contract cut short back in November.
His time at the helm of the Amsterdam giants ended with a win percentage of just 33 per cent after 15 games, with the team also marooned at the bottom of the Champions League table.
Palace will be keen to explore every possible candidate that could be available this summer, and that looks set to see Heitinga considered as well.