De Boer Ultimatum: Crystal Palace Boss's Future Reportedly Hinges on Burnley Result
Crystal Palace boss Frank de Boer risks becoming the first Premier League managerial casualty this season, and in doing so, becoming the shortest managerial tenure in the history of the league.
The Dutchman took over the reins at Selhurst Park over the summer, riding on the crest of introducing an entirely new philosophy at the club, with club chiefs desperate to see a new brand of free-flowing football - a departure from their typically counter-attacking style.
But the Dutchman has instead overseen three opening losses - two against relegation candidates in Huddersfield and Swansea - and a failure to find the back of the net, as well as inept performances, which has invariably troubled the Eagles hierarchy.
It is now reported by The Telegraph that failure by De Boer to win against another relegation candidate in Burnley on Sunday will almost certainly cost him his job, with the club having already begun their managerial search.
Palace did contemplate handing the Dutchman his P45 over the international break, but were persuaded to give him one last game to show that he was flexible and could prepare a formation for suited to the abilities of the squad. As a result, De Boer is now set to abandon his prefered three-man defence and adopt a 4-3-3 formation, which would seemingly provide greater for defensive stability.
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De Boer's weekly press conference was pushed back to Friday in a bid to give the former Ajax manager a chance to trial a new training schedule, with Sunday's game slated as a crunch game.
Sam Allardyce is the preferred choice for Eagles fans and chiefs, given his impressive performance as Palace boss last season, but it remains to be seen whether he could be tempted back into the dugout given his stated intentions to retire from club football.
One other possibility is that former manager and club legend Dougie Freedman will be given a chance on an interim basis, which would be in itself an interesting proposition to fans, given that he quit the club previously in order to assume the reins at Bolton.
