Oliver Glasner says authenticity is one of his biggest strengths. Yet it is what has alienated him with the Crystal Palace supporters — something he does not appear to understand.
On Friday, speaking in his press conference before Palace’s 1-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers, he said that the fans need to “stay humble”.
“I always said the most important thing is stay humble and it’s the same for the fans,” Glasner said. “Never forget where you’re coming from. I think a few who are so critical are not so humble and forget where they came from, and you get punished for this.”
That prompted a wave of anger which, for the first time this season, seeped into the stands at Selhurst Park. A banner was unfurled by the Holmesdale Fanatics which said he was “finished”. Songs referencing those words were heard in the latter stages of the game.
A schism has opened up between the manager and the fans.
Crystal Palace fans hold up a banner criticising the board and manager Oliver Glasner (Shaun Brooks – CameraSport via Getty Images)
The supporters feel he has insulted them. As a group, they have been through some tough times and witnessed some dreadful football. Some have painful memories of administration — a ‘proper’ crisis — and years scraping by in the Championship. They do not need to be told to be humble.
They seem to feel they are humble, that there is no sense of entitlement and that, actually, given everything that has happened of late, they have been more than accommodating of the manager and the team.
Palace’s supporters are not angry necessarily with the words on Friday, but tension has been simmering ever since Glasner’s remarkable press conference before the 2-1 defeat by Sunderland in January. The latest comments were simply the final straw.
That day he informed supporters that captain Marc Guehi would be leaving and would not make the trip to Wearside. But he then added that he, too, had decided to leave at the end of the season when his contract expires, something he had communicated to chairman Steve Parish in October.
His comments after the match only served to inflame the situation further as he complained that he and his players “felt abandoned” by the Palace hierarchy.
Oliver Glasner walks along the touchline ahead of his side’s draw against Nottingham Forest (Jon Hobley/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Since those two press conferences, supporters have themselves felt abandoned by their manager.
He did not need to reveal his departure, or blow up in the way he did. To them, that was a message he no longer wanted to be at the club. It did not — and does not — matter to them that he was talking about the summer, not mid-season. As far as some are concerned, he does not want to be here now. Glasner strongly disputes that.
The timing, especially of his most recent comments, was far from ideal and follows a recent trend of the Austrian saying things that have upset supporters in press conferences. But it also seems to have come across as patronising; that someone from the outside was telling the fans how to feel despite not knowing the full history of the club.
“We are humble,” wrote the FYP Fanzine on social media. “We’ve seen some dreadful times as a club. We’ve seen suffering. We’ve hit rock bottom. We’ve stood on the precipice and rallied to save our club. Twice!
“Our fanbase has been patient. Understanding. Appreciative. We’ve never experienced the joy you gave us. And we will never forget it. You think we don’t deserve you. YOU DON’T DESERVE US. You’re not putting your all into this anymore. We can see it. The players are showing it. We’ve stood by you, despite your insolence.
“We are humble. But we know when someone is taking the piss.”
We are humble. We’ve seen some dreadful times as a club. We’ve seen suffering. We’ve hit rock bottom. We love the highs and appreciate the lows.
But we aren’t a charity case. You aren’t just doing us a favour. You’re being paid to do a job, and you keep saying you can’t do it.
— Five Year Plan 🦅🏆🏆 (@FYPFanzine) February 21, 2026
For Glasner, though, the reaction to his comments has prompted confusion.
In his press conference after the Wolves victory — Palace’s second in 16 games in all competitions — he said that he did not think he had been disrespectful but, if that is how people felt, then he was sorry because he never wanted to be. He added he will “always say what I think is right”.
“I can’t see this because it is the second best season ever at this stage,” when asked if he could understand why fans might feel disrespected. “When I arrived two years ago we were a few points away from relegation. I know all the things that happened. These are the best two years in Crystal Palace history. Never forget where you’re coming from.
“This is not disrespectful; don’t just see the last 16 games, see a little bit longer. This is what I am telling everyone. It’s not so easy, I’m emotional and feel sometimes the same. I just wanted to remind them in a good way that Crystal Palace is in quite a good situation.
“The team that plays first time in European competition is the favourite (to win the UEFA Conference League). Always to consider, sit back and accept — this is what I wanted to express.
“Interpreting is always individual. I can say the same message after five wins and it’s interpreted as a positive message. But it can be in the opposite way because you are frustrated and disappointed. But my message is always the same.”
Evann Guessand and Daichi Kamada celebrate as Crystal Palace edge out Wolves at Selhurst Park (Paul Harding/Getty Images)
Glasner can sometimes be inconsistent in his messaging, but this is actually something from which he has not wavered.
On at least eight separate occasions since arriving at Palace he has used either the exact words “stay humble” or messages to that effect in press conferences, and they have gone unnoticed. It is his core belief that everyone should be this way, including himself. Not just the supporters.
He said it after the recent victory over Brighton & Hove Albion, before Palace’s first match in a major European competition in August against Fredrikstad, after a draw with Fulham on New Year’s Day, and after a 3-1 home win over AZ Alkmaar in November. Going back further, he said it before a 1-1 draw with Luton Town in March 2024, after a 2-0 win over Newcastle United in April 2024 and before a win over Manchester United in September 2024.
What the Austrian does not appear to have grasped when he references the results is that while Palace fans are unhappy about the run of form and the insipid football, the main problem is the way he has conducted himself publicly in announcing his departure.
While he is correct in saying that what happens on the pitch affects how comments are interpreted, he must realise that a week after his side threw away a two-goal lead against Burnley to lose 3-2, and after no home win since November — a run of eight games — and one win in 15 at that point, his words on Friday were never going to be well received.
However, there is also valuable context missing from the aggregated quotes which often appear online without any sense of the tone with which they are delivered, and which do not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of what he is trying to convey. As a non-native English speaker some things can also be slightly misconstrued.
Perhaps it is still on him to ensure that does not happen, but he will not self-censor. The accusation that he has ‘checked out’ was strongly disputed and his frustration at the performances, evidenced by his continued emotion on the touchline, back him up. Emotions are running high everywhere, including with Glasner.
Oliver Glasner remains as animated as ever on the touchline (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
He seems to feel he is misunderstood and is unable to comprehend why the supporters are disappointed. On that basis he has no reason to issue an apology because, in his mind, he has only said what is objectively true.
He came close to one post-match when he said “if somebody felt disrespected, then I want to say sorry because I never want to disrespect anyone”.
It was not a way of avoiding saying sorry outright, but his attempt to be empathetic. That is something he can struggle with at times. He sometimes speaks of things as if they are mutually exclusive when they are not.
Fans are also unhappy with what they perceive to be his stubbornness and a reluctance to move from his preferred system despite complaining about a lack of options. His response was to say that he trained with a back four all week before the 1-1 draw with Mostar only for it not to work and, therefore, abandoned the idea.
There is clearly a misunderstanding between a manager who can’t grasp why fans are unhappy when their team could still enjoy their best ever Premier League season and are still in Europe, and those supporters whose frustration at sub-standard performances, excuses and barbed comments has bubbled over.
Glasner could help lower the temperature as he did a week after those Sunderland comments. The problem is neither he nor those fans left so upset show any sign of shifting their stance.
In that context, things may only calm down if performances — as well as results — improve.