Guehi could give up Crystal Palace captaincy after Liverpool transfer collapse

Marc Guehi completed a medical on Monday evening, thinking he was about to join Liverpool in a £35million deal, only for Crystal Palace to pull the plug at the last minute

Marc Guehi is reportedly considering stepping down as Crystal Palace captain after being left furious at the club blocking his move to Liverpool.

Guehi looked set to join Liverpool on transfer deadline day after Palace chairman Steve Parish went against the wishes of manager Oliver Glasner to accept their £35million offer for the defender. He completed a medical in London and was due to fly up to Merseyside to join Alexander Isak with the Reds.

However, Parish ultimately changed his mind at the last minute, pulling the plug on the transfer after Glasner threatened to resign because a replacement hadn’t been signed. Palace had agreed a loan move with Brighton for Igor Julio, but the Brazilian ended up choosing West Ham instead.

The chaotic situation has had a significant impact on Guehi, who was consistently praised by Glasner for his professionalism while speculation swirled around him. The Guardian reports that he is ‘extremely unhappy’ and may release a statement to explain his side of the story after reporting for duty with England at St George's Park.

The 25-year-old is club captain but is so upset that the transfer was denied at the last minute that he could let go of the title. His current contract with the club runs until June 2026 and the possibility of him extending it now appears very remote.

His exit was so far down the line that Palace had recorded a farewell video for Guehi, which has since leaked on social media. He played and scored in the 3-0 win over Aston Villa on Sunday evening – a match that he believed would be his last for Palace – but now he will be expected to continue with the club after the international break.

Throughout the saga Glasner was clear that he did not want to lose his captain and most important centre-back without a replacement. Despite being linked with Manchester City's Manuel Akanji, Monaco’s Mohammed Salisu, Rennes’ Jeremy Jacquet, Toulouse’s Jaydee Canvot and Brighton’s Julio, they drew a blank.

As well as dealing with the fallout of an unhappy captain, Palace now risk losing Guehi for nothing next summer. He will be freely able to discuss a move with foreign clubs in the January transfer window, while Liverpool could decide to renew their interest in the New Year too.

“I can say it with clarity, and I said it to the chairman that it’s nothing to do with Oliver Glasner but we need to keep Marc to play a successful season,” Glasner said after the Villa win.

“We had a meeting in March where we talked about the situation so again we know how the situation is and we have an agreement that we could sell Marc if we have the right replacement in. We wanted to have this replacement at the beginning of the pre-season to be independent from this situation.

“That was on July 9 (the season started), it’s August 31 and there is no replacement in the building so it’s clear one part of the agreement is not fulfilled that means we can’t sell Marc."