Frank De Boer Named Crystal Palace Manager on 3-Year Contract

Crystal Palace have confirmed the appointment of Frank De Boer as the club's new manager on a three-year deal.

The Eagles announced their new boss on Monday on the club's Twitter feed:

In a statement on the club's official website, De Boer expressed his delight at being appointed:

I am thrilled to be appointed as manager of Crystal Palace Football Club. It is a great honour to take charge of such an historic club, a club that is known around the world for its hugely proud and passionate fan base. This role is a hugely exciting opportunity for me, and I cannot wait to get started in the Premier League with the players and staff here in south London.

The Dutchman arrives at Selhurst Park seeking to build on the good work done by Sam Allardyce, who left his post after steering Palace to safety in the 2016-17 Premier League season.

De Boer represents a glamorous signing for the south London side. The Dutchman enjoyed a glittering playing career with Ajax and Barcelona, winning six league titles in his career as well as the 1994-1995 UEFA Champions League.

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As a manager, De Boer steered Ajax to four successive league wins between 2010 and 2014 before leaving the club in the summer of 2016.

Inter Milan snapped the Dutchman up as a replacement for Roberto Mancini last year, although his stay at the San Siro was a short one. De Boer was sacked in November last year with the Nerazzurri down in 12th place.

Nevertheless, football journalist Daniel Storey believes the Eagles have made an excellent appointment in the 47-year-old:

At Selhurst Park the former Ajax man will have a clutch of talented players to work with, including the prolific Christian Benteke and the scintillating Wilfried Zaha. However, his most difficult challenge will be instilling some consistency into this group of players.

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After all, Palace have the quality within their ranks to push up towards the top end of the table and last season they earned some impressive scalps, winning at Chelsea and Liverpool in the run-in. But against sides unwilling to open the game up, they can look a little one-dimensional.

Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe suggested the patient style De Boer will look to utilise may not align well with the current squad, who are at their best when set up to counter-attack:

The coach will have to adapt his philosophies, something he was reluctant to do at Inter, in order to get the best out of Palace. Possession football can work in the Premier League, although De Boer will need to prepare an adaptable outfit ready for physical battles too.

Allardyce instilled some solid foundations during his brief time at the football club and if De Boer can add a flourish to those, Palace supporters should have a season to savour.