Happy birthday, Clyney!: His Palace journey, from fighting for survival to competing in Europe

This interview was initially published in the Crystal Palace v Aston Villa programme in January 2026 - you can buy issues of the matchday programme by clicking HERE.

Footballers are all about rhythm. After all, routine breeds consistency.

It’s why superstitions are so common amongst professionals, or at least they were before more started to look at the actual data, and less at which shin pad they must put on first.

When you are playing week in, week out in the Premier League, it’s the expectation that you are as close to the top of your game as possible. But when you haven’t been playing regularly, that sharpness, that rhythm obtained from all those matches isn’t there.

It’s never an easy situation to be in. So, when Nathaniel Clyne stepped into the Palace starting XI for December's trip to Fulham, he had to utilise every bit of previous experience built up over his career.

“It was always going to be a tough game anyway,” Clyne tells us on a cold morning at Copers Cope. “But from my personal perspective, having not started a Premier League game in… eight months I think, it wasn’t easy.

“I just wanted to be back up to speed as quickly as possible. In that scenario you just want to get your first few touches out of the way and build into the game.

“I managed to do that and fitness-wise I felt okay. That’s the other thing in your mind when you’ve not played for a while.

“Overall, I think I coped really well.”

That’s probably an understatement.

Clyne has always displayed a humble approach ever since he made his debut as an Academy graduate in his first spell in South London, back in 2008.

In the right wing-back role at Fulham, replacing the injured Daniel Muñoz, who had scored the winner just four days earlier at Burnley, the 34-year-old was excellent.

Palace won 2-1, thanks to goals from Eddie Nketiah and Marc Guéhi, but it was Clyne who stole the show, according to Manager Oliver Glasner.

“Today, honestly the Man of the Match for me is Nathaniel Clyne,” Glasner said after the win. “He didn’t play for months now.

“Performing like this with no real team training, always training in a group of eight, then showing this performance is huge credit to him. It shows what a great player he is and what a great person he is.”

High praise indeed. What’s even more remarkable is that Clyne didn’t have long to prepare, he only learnt himself the day before the game.

“During the last training session,” he says. “We tend to set up in our starting team, so I gauged from that I’d be in. The night before, the Manager confirmed it.

“But I think the training sessions really helped me feel up to speed. I could only perform like I did because of those.

“The intensity we have in training, the demands the staff put on us to perform... only that intensity and hard work means your body can cope with that situation.”

Regardless of numbers in the session or when he last played a full game, Clyne clearly expects to put the work in. This is also a player who has played for his country and trained with some incredible players over the course of his career.

So how does the current Palace set-up compare? “It is right up there,” Clyne reflects. “Even when we have a second day recovery session and the players who played are not training because they’re doing their own recovery, it’s still got that intensity.

“I’ve been at other clubs with other managers and in that scenario, they’ll let the players that haven’t played take their foot off the gas a bit.

“It’s fair to say that doesn’t’ happen here,” he laughs. “Here, we keep the standards high and I think that even when there is a session with smaller numbers, it’s still just as demanding as when the full squad are involved.”

The UEFA Conference League is one factor in the need to balance intensity, the extra workload part and parcel of winning trophies following last season’s FA Cup win – with Clyne involved in many a European matchday squad.

It’s a far cry from his first spell at Selhurst Park from 2008 to 2012. Back then, Championship survival and administration were the main priorities for the club. Now in 2026, it’s about making Palace a force on the continent and winning more trophies.

“Playing European football, it definitely feels extra special that it’s with Palace,” adds Clyne. “The fact it’s the first time in the club’s history as well, you can feel that. You know it means a lot to the supporters.

“It’s great we can all travel abroad together and compete on that big stage.

“And I think we’re adapting well to it. A few of the lads have obviously played in Europe before, but also quite a few haven’t.

“It’s very demanding playing in the Premier League and then having a European trip, doing all the travelling, so the team deserve credit for dealing with it and the staff as well for organising us and making sure we’re as prepared as we possibly can be.

“Hopefully we can make a good run in the competition and try and win it. That has to be the aim.”

During a frantic period, Clyne has continued to step up and deliver for Palace and – not the first time – shown himself to be a dependable member of this squad.

In the rematch with Fulham at Selhurst Park in January, he produced the Eagles’ best moment. Showing fabulous footwork out on the right, Clyne got beyond Antonee Robinson and delivered a perfect cross for Jean-Philippe Mateta to head into the net. Simply put, it was excellent wing-back play.

In the majority of his appearances since Oliver Glasner arrived in 2024, Clyne has played in the back three. But he is now showing the capacity to contribute at both ends, in attack and defence.

“It’s probably the first time in my career that I’ve played that role,” he reflects. “At least in terms of playing there regularly. I’d played the position before, but that was often when a manager was tinkering with a formation, not a set formation throughout the season.

“It is a little bit different. When you’re out wide with the ball, you don’t really have someone to combine with.

“For someone like me, who is a defender, you’ve naturally got to be more attack-minded. Your fitness levels have to be as high as possible, so it’s not easy! It’s more demanding than playing at full-back.

“But I’m enjoying it – it’s a lot of fun. You’ve got to contribute and be involved in the attacking phases of play more and every player wants that.”

Clyne, at the time of writing, hasn’t scored since returning, but came close in that first game against Fulham… only to not quite make the right connection when the ball came to him in the penalty area.

“It’s fair to say I had a few sleepless nights after that!” he laughs. “A lot of messages from friends saying I should have scored!

“It would have been the perfect time to score. But it did fall awkwardly on the ankle of my left foot. So I can’t blame myself too much.

"Hopefully the next time I get a chance with that sort of opportunity I’ll score,” he pauses… “or at least hit the target!”

Whether a goal comes or not, Clyne knows, through his 18-year experience as a professional, he needs to, first and foremost, just enjoy the moment.

He says: “I just want to continue what I’m doing. Stay fit, keep on enjoying playing football. Because you never know when it’s going to stop.

“I just want to stay fit and try and be as successful as possible.” And could that include winning another a trophy?

Despite achieving plenty over the course of his professional career so far, Clyne ranks last season’s FA Cup as his favourite day in the sport.

“It’s definitely top of what I’ve achieved,” he adds. “I have been in a lot of tournaments and a lot of finals, where I haven’t crossed the line or had the trophy at the end of it.

“So to lift the FA Cup was rewarding. I was relieved to get that win over the line, but to get a trophy with the club where I came through the Academy, it meant a lot.”

Clyne is known for his tattoos of London landmarks, a personal tribute to his home city. Could some future ‘ink’ be dedicated to the FA Cup or Community Shield wins?

“I think I’ll wait until the end of my career,” Clyne says. “Hopefully before then I can win a few more and put it all together!"

Considering the last 12 months at Crystal Palace, that sounds like a wise decision.