Fan Talk with HLTCO's Dan Cook: Palace have bright future despite Zaha exit

Podcaster and Crystal Palace fan Dan Cook, the man behind the hugely popular football Twitter account @HLTCO, is confident the Eagles remain on an exciting long-term path despite the loss of their talisman Wilfried Zaha.

In the blood

I'm a South London guy. My dad and grandad were both Palace fans and I've been going for over 20 years now.

So many people are drawn to big-six clubs in England with the potential of winning titles and trophies but I've always preferred the idea of supporting my local club.

It can be a bit frustrating but I wouldn't swap it for the world. Although a cup win would be nice, I'll admit!

Having studied sports journalism at university, HLTCO started out as somewhere for me to scratch my writing itch with Palace blogs and opinion pieces.

Now thanks to the micro-funding site Patreon, I've been able to monetise it. Talking about football for a living really is a dream come true. 

Time for a change

From the outside perspective, people were probably surprised to see Patrick Vieira get sacked last season but us fans could see it coming.

In his first season we finished 12th, had a great cup run and played some free-flowing football. I know it's cliche but it felt like an exciting project.

But three months prior to him getting the boot, that had all changed. 

The football was turgid, we weren't scoring goals and results were just about papering over the cracks. When those results turned, a change was inevitable.

Reliable Roy

Roy Hodgson's return split opinion among the Palace fan base but the job he did in three months last year spoke for itself.

Some say appointing Roy shows no long-term vision. I'm not sure a long-term manager exists for a club like Palace any more though.

If you hire a young, up-and-coming boss and they do well, they'll be poached very quickly.

I get that a portion of fans would like to see us spend aggressively and chase that European dream but the board are clearly trying to lay the foundations for our future.

We're investing in the club's academy, developing young talent. Roy understands the club's vision and is happy to continue overseeing things for another season, which I think suits all parties.

New era

It was a body blow to see Wilfried Zaha leave for Galatasaray. I'm still in mourning to be honest!

Though he's near impossible to replace, there was a four-year, £200,000-per-week contract offer on the table from us, so the club did all they could. 

Wilf has become synonymous with our club and is one of our all-time greats. He wants to test himself in the Champions League, so good luck to him.

Now I just hope we don't lose Michael Olise this summer as well. 

Reports keeping swirling of a £35million release clause in his contract but I believe a club would've triggered it already if that was actually the case.

If we keep hold of Michael, keep Eberechi Eze fit and get the signing of exciting Brazilian forward Matheus Franca over the line, there's plenty to be encouraged by.

I know it's dull but safety and more off-field progression will do for me — oh, and maybe a cup win!

Dan Cook was speaking to Matthew Hill