Damien Delaney has penned a new deal with Crystal Palace this week, keeping him at the club until June 2015. In addition to this, Keith Millen confirmed at his pre-West Brom press conference that Mile Jedinak was close to agreeing a contract extension. Having two stalwarts of Palace’s promotion triumph commit to the club will be a great boost to the supporters in difficult times.
The owners should receive some praise for arranging these deals, but one strange note to these agreements is their timing. Both look set to be completed after Ian Holloway’s departure, which begs the question of whether his presence at the club was a factor in the players not signing before.
This is of course mere speculation and there may be nothing in it but it is an interesting side to the story. But in terms of the deals themselves, they have further consequences for the club than just guaranteeing players for the remainder of this campaign.
Unless they are sold during a transfer window, both will be in the squad next season, whether that is in the Premier League or the Championship. Their experience of promotion and their roles in the squad will play an important part as there is every likelihood that a few members of the current squad may not be around next year, so to keep two key players will assist with some sense of consistency.
Delaney and Jedinak will be the sort of characters that will be vital to bonding the older faces with the newer ones, and they will play a vital role in Palace’s Premier League campaign.