It has been revealed that Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish delayed meeting with club captain Marc Guehi regarding his move to Liverpool because of a fitness class he was attending on Deadline Day.
The meeting was said to be delayed until after 6pm, according to the BBC, leaving less than one hour of the window remaining.
The skipper had already agreed a five-year deal with the champions, as well as completing his medical in London and was awaiting the final green light from the Eagles to put pen to paper.
There were complications, though: Igor Julio, with whom Palace had agreed a loan deal, changed his mind while en route to Selhurst Park after he got a call from West Ham.
Igor Julio instead chose to move to West Ham in the final hours of Deadline Day, meaning Crystal Palace cancelled the proposed move for Marc Guehi to Liverpool | GETTYThe Brazilian defender felt he had a better promise of guaranteed minutes from Hammers boss Graham Potter, and chose to move to the London Stadium instead.
This was coupled with Eagles boss Oliver Glasner reportedly threatening to quit if Guehi was granted his move.
Oliver Glasner threatened to resign should Marc Guehi be allowed to join Liverpool by chairman Steve Parish | REUTERS"We don't have the right replacement, so for me, it is clear that we keep [Guehi],” the Austrian boss said after Palace’s 3-0 away victory at Aston Villa.
With a total agreement in place, Liverpool submitted a deal sheet to the Premier League to allow extra time to finalise proceedings, but Palace did not sign.
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Marc Guehi had a total agreement with Liverpool only for Crystal Palace to pull the plug at the eleventh hour
| REUTERSChairman Parish was attending an afternoon fitness class until after 6pm, which meant he could not discuss with Guehi or communicate the decision to pull out of the deal until there were just minutes remaining.
Given the situation, Guehi, who had acted as a total professional and captained the side up until the day before deadline day in their recent victory at Villa Park, was said to be distraught by his failure to get his move.
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The 25-year-old will now remain at Selhurst Park for a fifth campaign in red and blue, before likely leaving the club in the summer on a free transfer.
Despite this, the former Chelsea man was seen grinning upon his arrival for the latest England squad on Tuesday. The defender has 23 senior caps to his name.
Parish was seemingly backed into a corner, faced with the risk of losing both his star player and his highly sought-after head coach with just moments to go in the window.
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It means he has now resigned to losing the centre-back on a free transfer next summer.
It was not a scenario that Parish had hoped the club would be in, previously insisting the club would either sell Guehi now or see him sign a contract extension.
"For players of [Guehi's] calibre to leave on a free, it's a problem for us unfortunately," Parish admitted.
Steve Parish was said to be attending a late fitness class on deadline day that delayed his meeting with Marc Guehi before ultimately cancelling the proposed move to Liverpool
|GETTY
But retaining both Guehi and Glasner, as well as the arrival of Jaydee Convot and Christian Uche on Deadline Day, means a window that started off woefully has ended on a positive note.
The summer started with Palace’s demotion from the Europa League after being adjudged to have breached multi-club ownership rules.
While incomings were kept to a minimum as the club awaited their fate, rumours swirled around talismen Guehi and Eberechi Eze.
Glasner’s side were unable to keep hold of Eze, who departed the club for Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal in a £67.5million deal.
Despite the chaos behind the scenes at Selhurst Park, the Eagles have maintained an unbeaten start to the campaign so far, recording five points from nine.