Crystal Palace dismiss head coach Patrick Vieira

Crystal Palace have, on Saint Patrick’s Day, announced that head coach Patrick Vieira has been dismissed. Three members of Vieira’s coaching staff at Palace – Osian Roberts, Kristian Wilson and Saïd Aïgoun – have also left the club. Goalkeeping coach Dean Kiely will remain at the club. The dismissal of Patrick Vieira follows a wretched run of results from the Eagles. The 12th-placed Premier League side lost three games on the bounce, against Aston Villa, Manchester City and Brighton and Hove Albion. Palace have failed to win a league game since December 31, when then defeated Bournemouth 2-0 at the Vitality Stadium.

Crystal Palace Football Club can confirm that Patrick Vieira has left his post as First Team Manager.#CPFC

— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) March 17, 2023

Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish said in a statement that “it is with enormous regret that this difficult decision has been made. Ultimately, results in recent months have placed us in a precarious league position and we felt a change is necessary to give us the best chance of retaining Premier League status.” Vieira, a World Cup and European Championships winner with France, joined Crystal Palace two years ago to replace departing manager Roy Hodgson. Last season, he led the Eagles to a FA Cup semi-final and to a 12th-place finish. It was Vieira’s third time in office as a first team coach following stints at New York City (2016-2018) and Nice (2018-2020). Palace state that the process to appoint a new manager is underway.

GFFN | Bastien Cheval