Crystal Palace dramatically pulled the plug on Marc Guéhi’s move to Liverpool minutes before the transfer deadline because they couldn’t find an adequate replacement, despite agreeing to sell the England defender for £35m earlier in the day.
It is understood that Guéhi had been booked in to complete the first part of his medical in expectation of his move to Anfield going through, with a deal sheet having been submitted before Monday’s 7pm deadline. But despite Palace confirming the signing of the France Under-20 defender Jaydee Canvot from Toulouse for £21m, they decided not to sanction Guéhi’s departure at the last minute because they failed to bring in another more experienced option.
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It is understood that the Palace manager, Oliver Glasner, was extremely unhappy at the decision to accept Liverpool’s offer and reiterated his plea not to sell his captain on the final day of the transfer window in heated talks with the club’s chair, Steve Parish, on Monday evening. There were even fears that the Austrian, who led Palace to their first trophy when they won the FA Cup in May, could step down after making it clear that they must keep hold of Guéhi if they are to have a successful season.
That, and their failure to bring in a direct replacement in time, eventually persuaded Parish to inform Liverpool the deal was off despite admitting after their victory over Arne Slot’s side in the Community Shield that he would probably have to be sold this month to avoid losing the 25-year-old for free next summer.
Palace announced the signing of 19-year-old Canvot and had also been working on deals to bring in a more experienced replacement for Guéhi, although a move to sign Brighton’s Igor Julio on loan failed to materialise and they could not find other replacements in time to beat the deadline. Palace are also in talks with Tottenham over a loan move for Manor Solomon and are set to sign Nigeria forward Christantus Uche for €20m (£17.3m) from Getafe.
Parish said after their victory over Arne Slot’s side in the Community Shield that Guéhi may have to be sold this month to avoid losing the centre-back for free next summer
