Crystal Palace Hodgson succession plan clear as Eagles plan to poach boss from Prem rivals

Crystal Palace will reportedly ‘make a move’ to replace manager Roy Hodgson with Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper should he leave the City Ground.

Hodgson took the top job at Selhurst Park for the second time in March and successfully guided the Eagles away from the relegation zone last season.

The 76-year-old coach, who has previously managed England, Liverpool and others, penned a new one-year deal with Crystal Palace in the summer.

The London club have had a somewhat underwhelming start to the season, however. They currently sit in 13th place in the Premier League table.

Crystal Palace have won just once in their last six matches and were beaten 2-1 by newly-promoted Luton Town at the weekend.

Cooper, on the other hand, is admired by many clubs after getting Nottingham Forest promoted via the Championship play-offs in the 2021/22 season.

The 43-year-old was close to being sacked last season but the Tricky Trees opted to stick with him. Their patience was rewarded, as they ultimately survived relegation with one game to spare.

Nottingham Forest are also on a poor run of form, however, winning just one of their last nine Premier League games.

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Hodgson under ‘increased pressure’ at Crystal Palace

Earlier this week, reports suggested that Hodgson was under ‘increased pressure’ due to Crystal Palace struggling for form.

Now, talkSPORT have claimed that the Eagles could look to replace the former Three Lions boss with Cooper.

“Cooper is under fresh pressure at the City Ground after a run of one win in nine Premier League games,’ talkSPORT’s report states.

“Palace owner Steve Parish is a long-term admirer of Cooper and would actively consider replacing Roy Hodgson with the Welshman if he did become available.

“Hodgson is only contracted to Palace until the end of the season. Cooper is also seen as a contender to replace David Moyes at West Ham when his deal expires in the summer.”

Meanwhile, Fabrizio Romano has recently revealed that Nottingham Forest are still behind Cooper, but ‘want to see different results.’

“There has been some speculation that Steve Cooper is now under growing pressure at Nottingham Forest after poor recent results,” Romano told Caught Offside.

“They’re on a run of just one win from their last nine, and sit 14th in the Premier League table.

“For now, they’re still backing Cooper, as far as I understand, but of course they want to see different results.

“They also know it is about bad luck as injuries like Taiwo Awoniyi are creating an issue, it’s not easy to keep going without players like him.

“Personally, I think backing Cooper was a great choice one year ago so I expect they will try to follow that way, but the situation in terms of results on the pitch certainly has to change.”

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