Oliver Glasner will be back at the drawing board over this international break as his Crystal Palace side sit 18th in the league.
After how last season ended, expectations were high and Daichi Kamada admitted Oliver Glasner was targeting European Football.
Given this pre-season discourse, the seven-game winless run has come as a bit of a shocker – with a relegation battle on the cards, although Opta has predicted Crystal Palace will comfortably survive.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 16 |  EvertonEverton | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 15 | -8 | 5 |
| 17 |  IpswichIpswich | 7 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 14 | -8 | 4 |
| 18 |  Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace | 7 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 10 | -5 | 3 |
| 19 |  SouthamptonSouthampton | 7 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 15 | -11 | 1 |
| 20 |  WolvesWolves | 7 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 9 | 21 | -12 | 1 |
Danny Murphy has agreed, explaining he thinks the Eagles simply have too much to go down. However, this won’t give the Eagles comfort as performances right now do not warrant wins with the attack being among the biggest issues.
Due to this, one decision from August could end up coming back to bite Crystal Palace.
Jesurun Rak-Sakyi would be very useful to Oliver Glasner right now
With Crystal Palace’s attack stuttering into gear this season and looking disjointed – a left-footed natural right-winger could really come in handy.
Eddie Nketiah has been utilised as the right-sided number 10 more often than not – although this has failed to prove effective for the Eagles.
Due to this, Crystal Palace will be ruing the decision to allow Jesurun Rak-Sakyi to head out on loan to Sheffield United.
Rak-Sakyi started pre-season so well for the Eagles, being among the goals prior to the US Tour. This form sparked a belief that he would be playing a key role this season – especially after the exit of Rak-Sakyi.
So far this season in the Championship, Rak-Sakyi has impressed, scoring twice while only starting two games with his latest performance absolutely being his standout best.
Last weekend, Rak-Sakyi scored twice against Luton Town to be named as man of the match.
Following this, he has also been named in the Championship’s team of the week which shows just how good he was against last season’s relegated side.
In this statement-making performance, Rak-Sakyi also completed two key passes as he was at his creative best – and justified why he was so eager to head on loan this season.
For the Eagles, however, this will be a decision they are ruing as his performances could be impactful at Selhurst Park.
What Steve Parish will be thinking about Crystal Palace academy graduate
Rak-Sakyi playing so well for Sheffield United – with the Blades second in the league – will no doubt be a message to those at SE25 who failed to assure him of his place in the squad.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  SunderlandSunderland | 9 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 18 | 8 | 10 | 19 |
| 2 |  Sheff UtdSheffield Utd | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 3 | 9 | 19 |
| 3 |  BurnleyBurnley | 9 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 14 | 4 | 10 | 18 |
Parish in particular may be concerned as he stands to lose millions if the Eagles do finish the season as low down the table as we currently find them – or worse still, relegated which can cost as much as £100m according to The Athletic.
This could leave the club wishing Rak-Sakyi had been kept, with his qualities better fitting to balance the team – also better suited to succeed Michael Olise.
For Crystal Palace, there will be solace taken in the fact that Rak-Sakyi can be recalled if needed and the way things are going, this may be the case.
Perhaps this will show the club that trusting the academy can in many cases be better than spending big – something which could yield serious results with multiple elite talents right now at Copers Cope.
