Merely months on from one of their greatest days, Crystal Palace are suddenly in disarray.
Manager Oliver Glasner, the man responsible for overseeing their FA Cup success and most productive Premier League season, has revealed that he'll be leaving the club at the end of the campaign, with Marc Guéhi's switch to Manchester City perhaps the catalyst for the Austrian's announcement.
Glasner says that his mind was made up months ago, having disclosed his decision to chairman Steve Parish. Ultimately, the Eagles failed to prove to their manager in the summer that they were capable of building upon a historic season, leaving Glasner with a thin squad for their maiden continental venture.
The revelation caps off a rough few days for Palace supporters, who saw their side succumb to one of the great FA Cup upsets at Macclesfield FC last weekend. In the aftermath, there have been murmurs of Jean-Philippe Mateta potentially seeking a move away, while midfield maestro Adam Wharton is bound to garner plenty of attention.
Wharton is the profile Tottenham are crying out for in their engine room, and the state of crisis that's brewing in south London should convince the Lilywhites to act.
Tottenham have opportunity to test Crystal Palace's Adam Wharton resolve
Spurs have already moved to bolster their unbalanced midfield by signing another runner in Conor Gallagher from Atlético Madrid. The former Chelsea star, in isolation, is a fine addition who undoubtedly improves Thomas Frank's side, but he's not going to solve the most glaring issue in the middle of the park.
Frank is currently bereft of a midfielder adept at resisting pressure, manipulating the ball and efficiently feeding those ahead of him. In short, Spurs don't have a precise progressive passer in midfield, and that's undeniably contributed to our open-play stodginess and over-reliance on "connections" in wide areas.
Wharton, in short, is a cultured passer who'd surely be mistaken for a 'La Masia' graduate if he were bronzer in complexion. That left foot of his is a wand, with those who play ahead of him fed relentlessly. He averages 6.32 progressive passes per 90 minutes throughout his senior career, and notched as many as 7.33 per 90 last season.
For context, the only Spurs midfielder averaging more than four progressive passes per 90 in the Premier League this season is Xavi Simons (6.41). Really, he should be doing more of the receiving. Lucas Bergvall, who's primarily been used as a No. 10, is next highest at 3.71, while João Palhinha is at 3.38, and Rodrigo Bentancur registered just 2.61 before his hamstring injury.
Frank has to part ways with the leash, but boy do we need a passer, too. Palace were once asking for as much as £100m for their midfield star, but the leverage they once had has dwindled thanks to recent developments.
A potential exodus may convince the player himself to act, and although he's likely to have a bunch of suitors, with some destinations currently more desirable than Tottenham, we'd be foolish not to have a crack at signing the Englishman before the end of the month. Suddenly, there's an opportunity.