Steve Parish Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace faced demotion to the Conference League due to multi-club ownership violations, leading to Nottingham Forest’s promotion to the Europa League. This development has sparked controversy, with former Palace shareholder John Textor expressing his discontent over the situation. Textor, maintaining a close relationship with Greek businessman Evangelos Marinakis, voiced his disapproval of the events surrounding the club’s relegation and the response from certain Palace supporters.
John Textor said: “I was extremely saddened to see his (Marinakis’) treatment at Crystal Palace. It’s a really classy bunch of fans, I know this to be true. For the ultras to go so hard at Nottingham Forest… there’s a whole lot of finger-pointing that should have been owners of Crystal Palace looking themselves in the mirror, pointing at ourselves, all of us. If Nottingham Forest wrote a letter enquiring as to the rules and the protocol and making sure that their club’s interests are represented, I think every club would have done that.”
Textor continued: “So I did want to touch on that because I don’t think that banner, which is one of the most disgusting that I’ve seen in the history of the Premier League, should be a reflection on Crystal Palace fans.”
The summer transfer window witnessed a significant exchange of players between Nottingham Forest and Textor’s Botafogo. Four players, including Igor Jesus, Jair Cunha, John Victor, and Cuiabano, joined Forest, while Danilo moved in the opposite direction to Botafogo. Despite the controversies, Textor emphasized that his relationship with Marinakis, forged through shared interests in Brazilian football, remains strong.
Textor remarked: “I think far too much is probably made of that. I mean, it’s a relationship forged in Brazil. He was in Brazil, believing in players in that market, actively recruiting them across all of his clubs. He has Rio Ave, in Portugal, Olympiacos, of course, and you can see the high reliance on Brazilian talent at Nottingham Forest as well. I would say he’s probably the most active European owner that I’ve seen down in Brazil. And when you’re a club like ours, which is from the ashes back to the pinnacle in three years – South American champions – there are a whole lot of reasons we’d be collaborating.”
He added: “But collaboration with him? Look, I think he’s a good guy. He cares about his club. You can go to his fanbases and you can get the measure of a man by talking to their supporters.”
Textor’s comments highlight the complexities of multi-club ownership and the impact it has on club dynamics and supporter relations. While the banner incident has marred Palace’s reputation, Textor’s defense suggests a belief in the club’s overall integrity and the importance of understanding the broader context of ownership and fan interactions.
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