Crystal Palace have been linked with a move for Swansea City boss Steve Cooper in the summer by The Sun.

Veteran boss Roy Hodgson's contract is up in the summer and with no new deal on the table just yet, it's thought that the Palace hierarchy are looking at potential replacements.

And Cooper's name has apparently been put on the shortlist after the impressive job he has been doing in his first senior role.

The former England under-17 boss had only coached youth sides before he was appointed at the Liberty Stadium in 2019, but he's impressed a lot of people having guided the Swans to the playoffs last season, and they currently sit third in the Championship table.

Let's take a look at three qualities that Cooper possesses that would make him a good fit for Palace.

Flexible formations

Cooper has shown himself to be fluid when it comes to tactics and formations, having players in his squad that can play in a number of different roles and positions.

Swansea went through the majority of last season playing a 4-2-3-1, but with only a few games of the campaign left, Cooper shook things up and started playing with three centre-backs, which has stuck ever since.

When it comes to formations, Hodgson is pretty stubborn and he rarely shies away from his trusty 4-4-2, so Cooper's methods would be a big change.

 

 

 

 

Playing attractive football

Soccer Football - Championship - Swansea City v Watford - Liberty Stadium, Swansea, Wales, Britain - January 2, 2021 Swansea City manager Steve Cooper reacts Action Images/Andrew Boyers EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club /league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.

Whilst Palace fans are used to a bit of a direct approach with the likes of Christian Benteke being up-top recently, Hodgson's style has been altered somewhat recently with the likes of Wilfried Zaha and Ebere Eze making them more attractive to watch as a neutral.

Those kinds of players will suit Cooper's tactics and style fantastically – he likes the defenders to play the ball out from the back and for his players to transition it on the floor.

So Eze, Zaha, Jordan Ayew, and others would love Cooper – but Palace may need to make some upgrades on their defence if they were to appoint Cooper as their current options aren't really known to be fantastic with the ball at their feet.

Strong defence

Soccer Football - Championship - Wycombe Wanderers v Swansea City - Adams Park, High Wycombe, Britain - September 26, 2020. Swansea City manager Steve Cooper hugs Swansea City's Morgan Gibbs-White after he is substituted. Action Images/Andrew Boyers EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club /league/player publications.

Cooper prides his side on having a strong defence – last season Swansea had the seventh strongest Championship defence and this term has seen them reach new heights, having only conceded 15 goals in 27 games.

The likes of Marc Guehi and Ryan Bennett have been particularly impressive and considering the next-best defence in the league has let in 20 goals, Swansea are doing pretty well.

If Cooper were to join Palace, he would likely implement his 3-5-2 formation on the squad, and that may take a few signings to get right, but it would surely do the Eagles well at the back.