November 20 2003

Simon Jordan

Former Palace manager Dario Gradi hit the nail on the head when he said: "Whoever goes for the Palace has got to be desperate. It’s not an attractive job, is it?"

Having managed Palace from February until November 1981, losing 18 of his 27 games in charge, the Crewe boss' opinion probably carries a bit of personal baggage.

But the growing number of names littering chairman Simon Jordan’s chopping room floor will undoubtedly hinder his search for his sixth manager in three years.

Kember recently became Jordan's fifth managerial casualty, joining Alan Smith and Trevor Francis in the sacked pile, rather than joining Steve Coppell and Steve Bruce by walking out.

That two excellent managers have walked out on Jordan, shows Gradi is not just airing a personal gripe against Palace.

Jordan claims to have backed all his managers with some of the £30m he says he has ploughed into the club.

But the facts say Kember bought Shipperley with the Dons’ rent for sharing Selhurst, Hughes was free and he was forced to sell Mullins.

Add to that losing Adebola, Kolinko, Akinbiyi, and Julian Gray and Jordan's "backing" should maybe carry the suffix "out".

Even Francis, who brought in nine players for around £4.5m (including £2.2m for Akinbiyi), had to sell Clinton and get rid of 25 odd players. As with most Nationwide clubs, the money that was there, isn’t any longer.

So what manager with a decent alternative would plump for Palace?

Glenn Hoddle has already cited Jordan as the reason for his lack of interest and he is desperate.

Iain Dowie is also keen, which is odd, with him doing a fantastic job leading cash-strapped Oldham to mid-table obscurity in Division Two this season.

Bryan Robson's interest in Palace was reborn when the Nigerian government baulked at his wages, and apparently died with Bradford's interest this week.

The one man who has shown willing publicly is former Wimbledon boss Joe Kinnear - who we named "Guardian's choice" after Kember's sacking.

Out of work since being inexplicably sacked by Luton Town in the summer, the 54-year-old hardly comes into the desperate category, and his comments suggest he sees Palace as a step up in his managerial career.

He said: "Palace would have a big attraction for me. I have always regarded them as a club of huge potential."

He has worked well on a shoe string, would bring Mick Harford in as coach and most importantly of all, has experience working with an eccentric chairman in Sam Hamman.

We will know by next Sunday whether or not Kit Symons is a genuine runner in the race to manage Palace, after three games in eight days provide a stern test.

If he does well, no doubt the cheap option wil be Jordan's preferred option, if not, the chairman will probably plump for another cheap option - or someone who desperate!

Join me from Walsall’s Bescott Stadium as we bring you all the action as it happens, free of charge. Then on Tuesday we travel to Stoke’s Britannia Stadium (KO7.45pm)

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