Crystal Palace are pushing ahead with their transfer plans for the 2026/27 season despite being without a manager.

Oliver Glasner announced earlier in the campaign that he would be leaving the club when his contract expired this summer.

The former Eintracht Frankfurt boss went out at Selhurst Park on a high by leading the Eagles to the Europa Conference League title, 12 months on from winning the FA Cup.

Palace are now in the process of appointing their next manager with Dino Toppmoller, who was most recently in charge at Frankfurt, and RC Lens boss Pierre Sage, emerging as two key targets.

The Eagles are still getting to work with their recruitment as they wait for their new manager and Middlesbrough star Hayden Hackney has emerged as a target for the London side.

Crystal Palace prepare formal move for Hayden Hackney

That is according to the Northern Echo, who have also revealed interest from Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Everton.

Red Devils boss Michael Carrick worked with Hackney at Boro, which could give Palace’s Premier League rivals the edge in the race for the player’s signature.

However, Palace are still ‘expected’ to make a formal move for the midfielder.

Hackney, who has been described by his Middlesbrough manager as “unbelievable”, has just 12 months left on his contract at the Riverside Stadium and the north east club are likely going to have to accept a decent offer as several Premier League sides circle.

Nottingham Forest are another top-flight club with an interest in signing the player. Hackney claimed five goals and six assists in 39 Championship appearances last term and Boro will want at least £25million to sanction the player’s exit.

Crystal Palace to try convince Adam Wharton to stay

Hackney has been listed as a potential replacement for Eagles midfielder Adam Wharton.

Interest in the former Blackburn Rovers midfielder is likely to gather pace in the coming months. He has been a long-term target for the likes of Man United and Liverpool.

The Eagles are under little pressure to sell him at this stage as he still has three years remaining on his contract.

Sky Sports News reported last week that Palace would try to convince Wharton to stay at the club for one more year following their Europa Conference League triumph.

The win over Rayo Vallecano in the final in Leipzig means the Eagles have qualified for the Europa League. Palace hope the offer of playing European football will be enough for Wharton to stick around for one more season.

The 22-year-old, who won the Player of the Match in the Conference League final, still has plenty of time on his side if he opted to remain at Selhurst Park for another season.

Arsenal came within a penalty shootout of completing one of the most remarkable doubles in English football history.

A Premier League title lifted at Selhurst Park, followed six days later by a Champions League final in Budapest. It was the stuff that dreams are made of, and for at least an hour, it looked entirely possible. Kai Havertz’s early opener had the red half of Budapest daring to believe, before Ousmane Dembele’s equaliser from the penalty spot drew matters level midway through the second half.

It was from the same place that Arsenal suffered their ultimate heartbreak, where misses from Eberechi Eze and Gabriel ultimately ended their hopes of the double.

Mikel Arteta’s approach to the final made many think whether it was the right way to set up for a Champions League final, and one of the most decorated players in English football history has waded his way into the conversation, with his verdict certain to divide opinion.

Gary Lineker, speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, was generous in his praise of Arsenal’s achievement in reaching the final, but pulled no punches when it came to assessing what the outcome meant for the game as a whole.

In his view, PSG’s victory wasn’t just a win for the French club, it was a win for football itself: “Looking at the game as a fan with no skin in the game, I think Arsenal had to play that way because they wouldn’t have beaten PSG any other way, but at the same time I think football won.”

Lineker was careful to acknowledge the legitimacy of defensive football, but made clear where his sympathies as a neutral lie:

He identified three teams as having reached that level in Europe this season, and Arsenal weren’t among them: “I think this season those three teams have been PSG, Bayern Munich and Barcelona.”

It’s a view that won’t sit well with Arsenal supporters, and many will argue that reaching a Champions League final without losing a single match in the competition until the penalty shootout is itself a mark of footballing excellence.

Mikel Arteta Vows Arsenal Will Learn From Champions League Pain

For his part, Arteta was in no mood to engage with the tactical debate in the immediate aftermath of the final. The Arsenal manager cut a devastated figure in Budapest and chose instead to focus on the raw emotion of the occasion and what it means for the club going forward.

“We haven’t done it for 22 years [reached the Champions League final], so imagine the second time in our history that we have done it, and we need to recognise the season we had. But at the moment nobody is going to take the pain away from you. You have to go through the emotions and if you’re in pain, then go through the pain. If you think you could do something else, then learn from it. Reflect on that and show the ambition that we want to have again.”

On PSG, Arteta was noble in defeat: “They are a superb team and I congratulate them. Individual quality they have, the manner they are coached – they are a top, top team.”

Arteta and his squad joined an estimated 1.5 million supporters on the streets of north London for the Premier League title parade, a reminder that for all the heartbreak of Budapest, this is still the most successful season Arsenal have enjoyed in a generation.

Anthony Joshua has revealed the two ways in which training alongside his former opponent, Oleksandr Usyk, has changed his approach to boxing. AJ was speaking ahead of his comeback to the sport, which is set to include a much-anticipated clash with Tyson Fury later this year.

Before he can fully focus on that bout, though, he must first safely negotiate his return to the ring on the 25th of July against unheralded contender, Kristian Prenga, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Though Usyk labored to a controversial 11th round knockout win in a crossover fight against the boxing novice, Rico Verhoeven, on the 23rd of May at the Pyramids of Giza, he remains one of the most decorated and established pound-for-pound fighters in the entire sport.

Usyk is admired for his prior dominance at cruiserweight, and for the way in which he lapped the competition at heavyweight through wins over Joshua himself, as well as Daniel Dubois and Fury.

Since dropping those losses to Usyk and, more recently, Dubois, the former two-time heavyweight king, AJ, has joined Usyk’s team and camp to learn from the Ukrainian maestro.

At a press event in London, Joshua explained what he’s learned from his time with the champ.

Joshua Now Trains With Usyk Full-Time

The new partnership began ahead of Joshua’s crossover bout with the creator-turned-fight figure, Jake Paul. With London becoming too distracting for Joshua’s increasing celebrity status, he left for Valencia to join Usyk’s team on a 10-day basis. But, according to AJ’s career-long promoter, Eddie Hearn, “he just never came back.”

Joshua maintained the relationship through 2026. They posted memes of one another to the Rocky theme, and Usyk’s sports director, Sergey Lapin, said the collaboration “isn’t about one opponent [but, rather] AJ’s development.”

There was even a suggestion Usyk could corner Joshua for a championship bout or, perhaps, the Tyson Fury mega-fight. But, though, it remains to be seen whether Usyk will be present for the Prenga fight, the effect he has had on Joshua has never been clearer.

What Anthony Joshua Has Learned From Oleksandr Usyk

On the two ways Usyk changed his perspective on boxing as he prepares to face Prenga and later Fury, Joshua said: “Fitness — and not just fitness for running, but boxing fitness. And IQ. When I say that, I mean defence. I understand it. I can really read punches again.”

The Brit, who has 26 knockouts from 29 wins, with only four defeats, added: “[I am] fully locked in. I can see it again. The punches. I can read the opponent really well, and [I’m] not focused on other stuff. I’m going to respect the sport of boxing.

“There’s a certain level of energy it takes to be a championship fighter, and you can’t be anywhere underneath that if you want to be good,” Joshua said. “And when you align your energy to that, everything becomes easy. I put my energy fully into boxing.

“I feel myself improving again,” he finished.

Watch AJ lift the lid on his experience with Usyk right here:

While the Joshua vs Prenga fight was announced earlier in the year, the rest of the card is yet to be confirmed. Considering Joshua’s agreement with DAZN, that broadcaster will likely stream the entire show. With Matchroom promoting, other Eddie Hearn fighters will likely join AJ on the bill.

Should Joshua defat Prenga, the date for his showdown with Fury is expected to be announced straight after.