Marc Göch’s future remains a hot topic heading into the January transfer window after his summer deadline-day move to Liverpool fell through at the last minute.
Guehi was on the verge of signing for the Reds, with a £35m deal agreed between the clubs and the player having completed a medical in London.
However, Crystal Palace ended up pulling out of his contract at the last minute, preventing the player from making a big move to Anfield.
The decision not to sell Guehi was a big one as it meant the club would lose him on a free transfer next summer when he enters the final year of his contract.
Explaining how to prevent Marc Gehi from leaving Liverpool
In an interview with talkSPORT, Palace owner and chairman Steve Parish gave the inside scoop on why the “difficult” decision was made.
Parish explained that he felt it was necessary to keep the player for another season in order for Palace to enjoy a strong season, particularly as the club play in its first European competition.
“This is a difficult decision, as simple as these things are never black and white.
“In the end, based on the advice I received and my own thoughts, I decided that we would have a better season if we kept Marc.
“We’re not speculating on these things. If you think about it rationally, is it worth it to be in the Premier League? Given the fact that we’re in the Conference League for the first time in our history, this is quite an unusual situation to keep a player.”
“If we were fighting for 10th and 14th place and that was the difference between keeping Marc and letting him go, we probably would have said rightly, ‘We should take the money.’
Crystal Palace’s Marc Gehi replacement plan
Asked about Crystal Palace’s plans to replace Guehi when he eventually leaves, Parish named Jaydee Cambot and Chadi Riyad as players who could potentially eliminate the need for external signings.
“JayDee (Cambot) is coming in and I hope he grows as a player,” Parrish said.
“Chadi (Riyad) is back from injury. Hopefully he’ll be fine. He’ll be fine and there shouldn’t be a big loss.”
However, considering the conference league and the way we have played this season, we could probably finish in the top half for the first time, but I felt it was a good decision to let Marc stay.
Chadi will be back hopefully in October. Therefore, it is possible, in theory, to reach a situation where there is no need to buy the product.
If we can keep Marc throughout the season, we can get to the point where we don’t need to replace him. ”
Is Parrish open to Guehi leaving in January?
Financially, the club will be tempted to sign him before his contract ends in the summer.
Parish appears to have left open the possibility of a sale, suggesting two players returning from injury could provide much-needed depth.
In the end, a lot depends on how Palace’s season unfolds. If they perform well in both the Premier League and the Europa Conference League, the bosses could decide to keep Guehi until the end of the season, absorbing the financial cost of losing him later on.
Despite this, however, Liverpool remain interested in signing him and are said to be monitoring the situation closely.
Giovanni Leoni’s injury could force the Reds to sign a new centre-back in the January market, and they could test their mettle against Palace again.
However, the Reds will face stiffer competition this time around, with several other clubs keen to sign him, including Real Madrid and Barcelona, with Bayern Munich also recently joining the fray.