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Damien Delaney believes Crystal Palace will be taking a huge gamble if they appoint Frank Lampard as the club’s new manager.

Former Chelsea boss Lampard has been heavily linked with the vacancy created by Roy Hodgson’s departure. However, he is believed to have slipped down the pecking order for chairman Steve Parrish and former Ireland and Palace defender Delaney understands why.

“With so many players out of contract this summer, Palace have a chance to change the direction of the club and he has to get the next managerial appointment right,” Delaney told TEAMtalk at an Amazon Prime event.

“Lampard has been linked with the role, but that might be a bit of a gamble to go for him.

“He did reasonably well at Derby and Chelsea. But if he had a poor start there would be an enormous amount of media attention on him.

“The pressure would be on and if he started badly, you could be back in the situation Palace had with Frank De Boer. He started badly and needed to be removed.

“Eddie Howe is a manager who might be a good fit for Palace, but it is a tough call for the chairman. This is a massively important moment for the club.

“It is a massive moment for Palace this summer. Roy Hodgson has gone and they have a chance to go to the next level if they get it right, but that move is also laced with danger.

“They tried it once before when they signed some big players like Christian Benteke and Yohan Cabaye. It didn’t quite work out, so they have to make the right calls now to make sure they get this right.

IT’S HERE.

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Now available worldwide on @primevideosport! #CPFC | https://t.co/utMcYSlISB pic.twitter.com/1G0QX8tPeC

— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) June 3, 2021

“Palace has the potential to be a huge club. They have a massive catchment area in south London. A great fan base and a chairman who has all the right intentions for Palace. Now they need to make sure they make the right calls on managers and new players this summer.”

Delaney was speaking at the launch of an Amazon Prime documentary on Palace’s promotion-winning 2012/13 season, when he played a role in a success story that was hard for him to believe on a number of levels.

“When you consider the mess the club was in when I went there. It’s amazing to see them playing the last eight seasons in the Premier League,” he added.

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‘They could hardly pay me’

“On the day I signed for Palace, they admitted they had no money and could hardly pay me.

“I had decided to retire from football and head back to Ireland. But I got a call from Palace and went down to the training ground undecided what I would do.

“I agreed to sign what would be considered a pittance in football terms, but the club is in a different place now and it’s great to see.

“We had a lot of hairy moments in my first season I went to Palace. Things happened that season that didn’t make a lot of sense and sheer will got us over the line.

“We fell into the play-offs on the final day of the season. You could just sense that things were going our way and it took us to the Premier League.

“I stayed for another five years in the Premier League and we had some great moments. So I’m proud to have been part of the Palace in one of the club’s greatest eras.

“It will be great to watch this documentary. You will see the story of a club that was going nowhere to one that ended up in the Premier League.”

*When Eagles Dare is a compelling documentary available on Amazon Prime now.

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The post EXCLUSIVE: Pundit picks ‘good fit’ for Crystal Palace and says Lampard is a gamble appeared first on TEAMtalk.