When Eagles Dare charts Crystal Palace F.C’s remarkable resurgence from financial ruin and administration in 2010, to playing in the 2013 Championship play-offs for promotion to the Premier League.

When Eagles Dare

## World Cup winner ##
> After a season-and-a-half on loan to Swansea City, Marc Guéhi was recognised as one of the Championship's brightest prospects. He joined Palace in summer 2021.

Guéhi signed a five-year contract with the club, committing his services until summer 2026.

He became Patrick Vieira’s third signing as Palace manager.

Guéhi was born in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire - the same city Wilfried Zaha was – and moved to England aged one. He spent much of his early years in Lewisham and began his youth career with Bromley-based Cray Wanderers.

It didn’t take long for Guéhi to attract attention and, aged just seven, he was scouted by Chelsea.

Progressing over the following decade with the Blues, Guéhi did enough to stay at the club year on year and reaped the rewards with an immensely successful peer group.

Winning the treble with the Blues’ Under-18s in 2016/17, Guéhi signed his first professional contract in September 2017 and went on to help Chelsea scoop the quadruple – including the FA Youth Cup and league – that same season.

Guéhi’s Academy team helped to reinforce Chelsea’s image as one of the fiercest youth sides in England, as the centre-back played alongside the likes of Reece James, Tariq Lamptey, Billy Gilmour, Conor Gallagher and Callum Hudson-Odoi.

But it wasn’t just at club level where Guéhi enjoyed success with a noteworthy youth team, as the teenager won the Under-17 World Cup with England in 2017. Indeed, Guéhi captained the Young Lions to the U17 European Championship final that same year and scored in the World Cup final just months later.

These performances ensured Guéhi was rewarded with a taste of first-team football, and he began to be named in Chelsea squads in spring 2019 – being a senior substitute on four occasions in 18/19.

His breakthrough came in the League Cup against Grimsby Town as the Blues stormed to a 7-1 victory with Guéhi in the backline. He again earned professional minutes for Chelsea in a fourth-round defeat against Manchester United, and secured a loan move to Swansea City shortly after.

Guéhi fought to secure his place over a half-season with the Swans that was disrupted by the league’s suspension in March. Having returned from the pause, Guéhi played in Swansea’s final five matches and helped to clinch a sixth-place finish.

Play-off heartbreak came for the first of two times as Swansea lost on aggregate to Brentford in the semi-finals, but Guéhi went on to enjoy personal progression the following season regardless.

2020/21 was something of a landmark for the defender, who returned to Swansea on loan for a full campaign and played 45 games. He became recognised as one of the league’s brightest talents and helped Swansea climb further up the table with a fourth-place finish.

Swansea and Guéhi continued to go one better than 19/20 by reaching the play-off final, but football showed its unforgiving side once again as Brentford overcame them for a second time. Guéhi played in every minute of the three play-off matches.

Guéhi describes himself as “strong, comfortable on the ball and hopefully growing to be a leader one day.”

These traits are evident in his play, with the 21-year-old having captained England Under-21s and made himself a mainstay for Swansea despite being one of the squad’s youngest players.

His attitude became clear when a post-match interview with him went viral across social media. Having earned a spot at Wembley and consecutive Man of the Match awards from Sky Sports, Guéhi humbly rebuked the accolades by saying: “The first time I was really surprised. Now I think it’s getting a bit ridiculous! Everyone was fantastic today, to a man. I could name everyone. For me to get this again, I don’t know.”

On the pitch, Guéhi is assertive and vocal, often heard organising his teammates with confidence. This confidence is reflected in his willingness to drive out from the back and distribute possession from relatively high up the pitch.

During a solid first season with Palace, Guéhi captained the club for the first time against Watford in February earned a debut England call-up in March 2022, making his debut in a 2-1 win against Switzerland.

UEFA European Under-17 Championship, 2017

Team of the Tournament

Crystal Palace March 2022

Player of the Month

Crystal Palace, 2021/22

Players' Player of the Season

Shirts

Twitter

Appearances

Goals

The first team 'secretly' voted for their player of the season

Andersen & Guehi on their defensive partnership

Marc Guéhi speaks about the loss to Newcastle United

Don't Let It Drip!

Marc Guéhi takes questions from the press before the FA cup semi-final

Marc Guehi wins W88 Player of the Month for March

Marc Guehi on a goalscoring cup performance

Marc speaks to Palace TV after hearing of first senior Three Lions selection

Marc Guehi explains the focus needed to defend against Man City

Marc Guehi reflects on another clean sheet on the road.

Marc and Conor join forces to rate each other's performances

Marc Guehi on a clean sheet at the Brentford Community Stadium

Crystal Palace vs Hartlepool | Access All Over

Marc Guehi reflects on a goalscoring performance against Pools

Marc Guehi on an end-to-end game at Selhurst

Season

Games

Ebiowei joined Derby in 2021 and earned his place in the first-team aged 18, making his debut in February 2022 as a substitute in place of fellow Palace arrival Luke Plange.

He scored his first professional goal in April and went on to make 16 Championship appearances in 21/22, drawing attention for his attacking prowess.

Ebiowei’s senior debut came as a reward for his impressive displays at Under-18s level, scoring 10 times in nine games across all competitions, including hat-tricks against Leeds United and Chelsea.

He started his youth career at Arsenal before a short spell in Scotland with Rangers, and has represented both England and the Netherlands at youth international level.

Ebiowei was keen to pass on his gratitude to Derby County and its supporters, saying: "I'd like to thank everyone at Derby County for their incredible support over the last year or so, and for giving me the opportunity to show what I can do on the field, and I’d also like to thank the fans for their encouragement especially given the circumstances of last season.

“As everyone is aware the situation is very uncertain at Derby, so it was important for me to secure my long-term future.”

He added: “I’m incredibly excited about the prospect of joining Palace, as they have an incredible squad and huge potential. I very much hope to contribute positively to the team this season.”

Chairman Steve Parish said of Ebiowei's arrival: “I’m delighted that Malcolm has chosen Crystal Palace as the best place to continue his development, following his impressive breakthrough into senior football in recent months. He is a highly coveted young player, and we very much expect to provide a platform for him to flourish at the highest level.”

Crystal Palace have agreed terms with teenager Malcolm Ebiowei, with the 18-year-old winger set to join Patrick Vieira’s squad from 1st July, when his current contract with Derby ends, on a five-year deal.

Malcolm Ebiowei commits to Palace 

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The Palace left-back, speaking on the *On the Judy* podcast, discussed his pre-match research before taking on world-class wingers each weekend. One player stood out as the toughest.

“This season, I would probably say \[Hakim\] Ziyech,” he said. “He was doing loads, especially in the first-half. It was a long first-half.

“To be fair, with most \[players\] you know them from watching it on TV. They are guys that you watch in the Champions League, so I kind of know certain \[players\] are going to be skilful, blah blah…

“But if I know someone that knows them, I’ll ask them about them. So Jairo \[Riedewald\] played with \[Ziyech\] at Ajax, so I’ll ask him: ‘What is he like?’

“It’s trying to get a rough idea before the game. You have to, man – these guys are dangerous!”

As well as potential opponents, Mitchell looks to players that have been in his position for inspiration as he continues to develop.

“I’ve been watching \[Nathaniel\] Clyne since he was young,” he says. “Seeing Aaron Wan-Bissaka when he was at Palace \[too\].

“These guys are inspirations, especially since I’ve been at Palace. Having a career like Clyney is something that loads of young full-backs would want.”

Just like Clyne, Mitchell can now add an international cap to his list of achievements, after being called up to the England squad by former Palace captain Gareth Southgate.

“It’s mad, because all the videos you watch… you know the behind-the-scenes on the England channel? Whenever there’s an England camp on, everyone watches that,” he explains. “As soon as there’s a camp on, you’re just waiting for training clips.

“So when I was going, it was really mad. To be fair, I didn’t want to think about it too much because then you don’t get disappointed if it doesn’t happen.

“I just let it float in the air, and then when it was actually real that’s when I said: ‘Yeah, calm’.”

Despite it being his first time joining up with the national team, Mitchell learned a great deal from his time at St George’s Park.

“I tried to do the same things,” he said. “That’s what gives you your confidence. I was already nervous, so I just tried to keep my composure by doing the same.

“When you’re at your club, because you’re there all the time, there might be training sessions that you may take your foot off the pedal. But when you’re there you know that you’ve \[only\] got a week to show yourself.

“Everyone there is trying to show themselves. I took from that: be on it 24/7. That’s the biggest part. These guys, even if they’re doing a little training session against no one, everything is sharp. Everyone’s passing is sharp, everyone’s moving sharp.”

With the World Cup in Qatar fast approaching, can Mitchell force his way into the travelling party?

“I’m just trying to focus on what’s in front of me,” he says with a wry smile. “If I can get that right, then who knows…”

*Watch the full episode of the* [podcast on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWWT0PJpdk_WYEJOJmD7bHA/featured) *or* [listen on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/2WGn4X6adOuLZI0G6kNnMe)*.*

Tyrick Mitchell has revealed the preparations he makes to face dangerous Premier League opponents, with work taking place off the field as well as on it before important games.

Tyrick Mitchell discusses technique to gain advantage on opponents

Make no mistake, the first league fixture is still some way off. There is plenty to happen in the meantime: the transfer window remains open, a pre-season tour to Singapore and Australia is yet to get underway.

But when Palace take to the field at Selhurst Park on Friday, 5th August, much of their hard pre-season work will have stemmed from what happens in this session.

It’s pre-season testing day.

“For us, today is the first day of the season,” says physio James Haycock, overseeing large aspects of the players’ return. “It’s great to catch up with everybody really.

“You catch up about the summer, you get the players in and you try to set the tone for what’s going to be the rest of the season. Although it’s a bit light-hearted today, it’s still gearing us up to get out on the grass on Monday.

“It’s great to catch up with everyone, see all the players and see all the old faces as well.”

There is a certain sense of déjà vu here, a reminder of those first days back at school after the summer holidays.

In the gym, rows of boots are neatly lined up against the wall, underneath a giant whiteboard laying out today’s schedule. Beeps and alarms punctuate the air as GPS trackers stir back into life after their own post-season hiatus.

As the players arrive, talk is of summer holidays and family news – even the latest *Love Island* developments require detailed discussion.

But for all the joviality, the work is serious and soon testing is underway.

“This pre-season day is like a snapshot in time, in terms of how the players are, how they return, what their fitness level is like,” Haycock explains. “That then allows us to formulate individual programmes for each specific player.

“It allows us to set some benchmarks and determine where their ‘start points’ are, so that as the season goes we can monitor their base fitness, but also their muscular and skeletal fitness.

“It can be things like ensuring they have a good range of movement from the hips, a good range of movement from the muscles. That informs us as we go through the season in terms of rehab and return from injury.”

In the gym, Jack Butland and Joel Ward come to the end of their warm-ups on exercise bikes. They begin their rounds, leaping from a standing start and hopping from one side of the room to the other.

The next cohort arrive, and Will Hughes and James Tomkins notice the scores being uploaded to a large screen leaderboard in the corner of the room. These are top-level athletes, and their competitive nature kicks in straight away.

“You don’t want to be last,” Hughes points out.

As Haycock points out, today is not about competition – but it should be a gruelling experience, nonetheless.

“It will take a reasonable bit out of them,” he says. “That’s why they’re in today, and then they have a couple of days off where they don’t need to train before they start out on the grass on Monday.

“We give them a couple of days to recover from some of the maximum testing that we’re doing in the gym today.”

The old clichés of players returning with a beer-belly or an additional couple of stone are of a bygone era. The medical staff expect the squad back in excellent condition.

“Those days are gone really – players don’t come back grossly overweight,” Haycock says. “When I first started in the game 20 years ago, players would use the pre-season as the time to get fit.

“Now players go away with an extensive programme to do over the off season, and they know that if they don’t come back in reasonable shape they are going to struggle in the first couple of weeks, and it will be really difficult to catch up with the group.

“They all have individual programmes that are largely set by the sports science staff, which gives them a couple of weeks off followed by a gradual increase in their training loads.

“They’re away, but they are always on the radar.”

That rest is key, and plays an important part in remaining fit throughout a physically demanding campaign.

“It’s a long season, and all the players need a rest physically and psychologically,” he says. “If you think about the international players, its particularly difficult for them because they go straight after the season into another two or three week block.

“They need a two or three week period at the end of that where they can allow their bodies to recover. The difficulty is that if you just keep training and training, the body doesn’t recover. It can impact on performance, and it can set you up for injuries across a long and difficult season.”

In the next room, there is audible exertion as James Tomkins pushes his body to the limit.

“Halfway there!” comes the shout from the staff. James McArthur can’t resist a response. “That’s the worst shout in the world that,” he laughs. “‘Halfway there’ – that’s the worst…”

Moments later it’s his turn. As he struggles away, Tomkins leans across: “Halfway there!”

For the players to enjoy a good relationship with the medical staff is important, particularly as they are both aiming for the same end goal.

“There are a lot of players who really want to play – and we want them to play,” Haycock says. “Often medics can be accused of keeping players longer than necessary. That really isn’t the case.

“It’s more a case of players balancing risk and reward. A player might go back early and get away with it, but he might get injured and miss the next three or four games.

“It’s always a balance and a discussion between the player, the medical staff, the sports science staff and the coaching team as to how big a risk we are ready to take.”

And so the second major relationship comes into play: the interplay between the medical staff and the Patrick Vieira – and his coaching team.

“For me, that’s one of the biggest relationships in a football club,” Haycock says. “For the manager to trust what we do, and allow us to inform some of their training.

“That relationship really is massive. The gaffer and Osh \[Roberts\] have been really good in my time here. They push, they want the players on the grass and they train really hard, but they’re also open to suggestion that perhaps we modify somebody or do something different for a day or two.

“Because we’re all ultimately working to get the players available in the best condition for the weekend or for the game, whenever that is.

“But that relationship really is key. The manager and Osh have been very good and supportive in terms of listening to how we work as an overall team.”

As the players lie back on massage tables, detailed measurements are taken between every joint and muscle, while limbs are stretched and pulled in all directions. For most, this is second nature by now.

It may be a tough first day back in the office, but it is worth it because it signifies one thing: the return of club football and the start of a brand new season.

Perhaps that is why spirits are so high, and why the sound of laughter so often fills the room. Just like the supporters who will greet them at Selhurst Park in August, the players just can’t wait to be back.

As the summer sun beats down on Copers Cope Road, the familiar sound of activity has returned to the Crystal Palace training ground. The summer break is over and the players have returned; this, in some respects, marks the start of the 2022/23 Premier League season.

Announcement

Announcement

Malcolm Ebiowei commits to Palace

Tyrick Mitchell discusses technique to gain advantage on opponents

'You don't want to be last' - Inside pre-season testing

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Latest Videos

Crystal Palace Release Away Kit 2022/23

22/23 Memberships now on sale

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All For The Dub | Sneak Peek

The Full 90: Crystal Palace 1-0 Manchester United | PalaceTV+

6Marc
Guéhi

Announcement

Announcement

Malcolm Ebiowei commits to Palace

Tyrick Mitchell discusses technique to gain advantage on opponents

'You don't want to be last' - Inside pre-season testing

Shop online

Latest Videos

Crystal Palace Release Away Kit 2022/23

22/23 Memberships now on sale

Famous Palace fan Jim Piddock launches new book

Crystal Palace rewind their badge to 1861 in honour of their history

All For The Dub | Sneak Peek

The Full 90: Crystal Palace 1-0 Manchester United | PalaceTV+

6MarcGuéhi

6Marc
Guéhi