Crystal Palace manager Leif Smerud departs club after WSL relegation

Leif Smerud has near his relation arsenic Crystal Palace’s women’s team’s manager aft lone 2 months successful charge, pursuing their relegation from the Women’s Super League.

The 48-year-old Norwegian arrived connected 1 March and oversaw conscionable 9 games successful each competitions, winning one, drafting 1 and losing seven, concluding with Saturday’s 5-2 nonaccomplishment distant astatine Manchester City connected the last time of the WSL season.

Crystal Palace finished 10 points adrift of information successful the WSL’s sole relegation spot aft conscionable 1 play successful the apical tier, pursuing their promotion past word nether the enactment of their erstwhile manager, Laura Kaminski, who was sacked astatine the extremity of February.

Commenting to the club’s media channels pursuing his departure, Smerud said helium was arrogant of his clip astatine the club: “While we didn’t get the result we hoped for, I’m arrogant of the enactment we’ve done together. I’m grateful to Steve Parish and the committee for their spot and for the opportunity.”

A connection from the club, issued connected Sunday morning, said: “Following the decision of the 2024-25 Women’s Super League season, Crystal Palace tin corroborate that manager Leif Smerud volition depart the club. Crystal Palace volition supply an update connected Leif’s replacement successful owed course.

Parish, the club’s chairman, added: “Leif joined america during a challenging period, and we are grateful for his publication and the professionalism helium has shown during his clip astatine the club. We privation him each occurrence successful the future.”

When Smerud was hired, the magnitude of this declaration was ne'er disclosed, but speaking successful his post-match property league aft Saturday’s nonaccomplishment astatine City, helium appeared to beryllium preparing for the summertime ahead, saying: “There is an opportunity, erstwhile you are relegated, to larn from it and I deliberation that volition beryllium important to measure what happened and larn from it, and I’m definite we will. The summertime volition beryllium an important one.

“It was a truly hard concern erstwhile I came in. I knew what I was going into but we had a batch of injuries coming astir astatine the infinitesimal I signed, and we had to benignant of halt the bleeding earlier we could commencement building, but the show contiguous [Saturday] and Leicester and Villa and immoderate of the others, we person been bully but not bully capable to enactment successful the league. But I spot improvements. We play a antithetic shot present than we were capable to erstwhile I came.”