Crystal Palace let go a number of players over the summer, with some big names leaving and some of the club’s previously lesser-seen players also moving on.
Of course, the big story of the summer was Ebere Eze. Arsenal signed Eze from Crystal Palace in a deal worth almost £70million and in the end, the Eagles did well to only oversee one big player sale.
Liverpool tried to sign Marc Guehi on deadline day but ultimately failed, whilst the likes of Adam Wharton also had links to some of Europe’s biggest teams over the summer.
Oliver Glasner also cleared a lot of the deadwood from his team with a handful of players leaving on loan and another handful leaving as free agents.
Among those to leave as a free agent was striker Luke Plange. The former Arsenal youngster moved to Selhurst Park from Derby County in 2022 but left without ever making a single first-team appearance.
Luke Plange finding form in Switzerland after leaving Crystal Palace
The 22-year-old spent all of his time with Palace out on loan. In just three years at Crystal Palace, Plange went out on loan to six different clubs, playing in England, Scotland, Belgium and Finland too. In the summer transfer window just gone, he joined Swiss side Grasshopper Zurich on a free transfer.
Since then, Plange has found some scoring form with two goals and two assists in eight league games for his new club. Signing a contract until 2028, Plange is the club’s second-highest scorer in the league so far this season, but his last game ended in a red card.
Grasshopper beat rivals FC Zurich 3-0 but Plange was given a straight red card late on, seemingly for striking an opposition player in the face area.
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Why didn’t it work out for Luke Plange at Crystal Palace?
There were times when Plange looked like a real prospect. Plange once scored a hat-trick for Crystal Palace’s U21s and eventually scored six in seven appearances for the side, though Glasner never felt he was ready for the Premier League.
And in several loan spells, he failed to really impress all that much. Playing lower down the English leagues with the likes of Lincoln City and Carlisle United, Plange couldn’t find his scoring touch.
But Plange impressed with the likes of HJK in Finland, scoring six in 26 league games, suggesting that he might have been better-suited to overseas football which is what we’re seeing now in Switzerland.
Plange will now serve a suspension and he could face a fight to get back in the team given the severity of his offence in the game against FC Zurich.
