Former Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan (centre) (Image: Steven Paston/PA)
Former Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan (centre) (Image: Steven Paston/PA)
Former Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan praised Steve Parish’s custodianship of the football club after the Eagles won the FA Cup for the first time in their history.
Eberechi Eze cemented himself in Palace folklore at Wembley on Saturday when his 16th-minute volley clinched the south Londoners' first piece of major silverware.
After winning the FA Cup, the Eagles will now compete in the Europa League next term, led by Oliver Glasner, who won the competition with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022.
Palace chairman Parish, who succeeded Jordan 15 years ago and navigated the club out of administration, has previously said 'there is a lot of water under the bridge' between himself and Jordan.
There is a well-documented grudge between the duo, but Jordan paid compliment to the job Parish has done at Selhurst Park since 2010.
“It’s a remarkable result for Palace and brilliant for the club and the ownership,” said Jordan on his talkSPORT radio show.
“The chairman of the football club did a good thing after the game and spoke to the fans and told them about how he delivered a trophy and they deserved it.
“The current ownership of Crystal Palace have done brilliantly. Whatever rancour I may or may not have with individuals, I would have loved my father to be here.
Crystal Palace chairman and co-owner Steve Parish (Image: PA)
“He was a Crystal Palace fan, played for Crystal Palace in the 50s. His father supported supported Palace. He'd have loved to have seen this. So I look at it through that prism.
“I sat in a quiet little boozer, one of the few quiet little boozers in South London and watched the game.
“Everywhere you went out, you bumped into Palace fans, and they were filled with joy. What a wonderful thing for the club to have done.
“This is about Parish. It's about Freedman. It's about the last 15 years. It's about this moment in time. It's about this manager because he is a top-draw manager.
Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner (Image: PA)
“The only emotion I would ever have while sitting back and being reflective was one of a little bit of envy because you've got an owner sitting there that's given to this wonderful group of fans a monumental competition.
“He knows what the FA Cup means. It may be diminished slightly by the Premier League, but it is still the best cup competition in world football.
“Could you imagine what Palace could achieve if they had £200 million to spend on transfers. The fact of the matter is they've given themselves a challenge and an opportunity in equal measure.
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“I wrote a column which in no way was meant to be mean-spirited. If Glasner wins the FA Cup, there will be suitors, and there'll be suitors for Marc Guehi because he was outstanding.
“There'll be suitors for Eberechi Eze, there'll be suitors for Daniel Munoz. It's about what they can achieve as a result of it.
“They're going to play in European football. And you know what? There's no reason, given the Europa League and what we've seen this year, that Palace can't have a good go at the Europa League.
“If you look at the playing squad assembled by Dougie Freedman, that's a great piece of work as well.
“Whatever I may or may not think about Parish, a year ago, people were screaming at him. They were screaming at Palace and saying this club is going nowhere, and the chairman has no ambition. Now look, a year later, how quickly things can turn.”
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