Gray days at Palace are over

14 April 2012

Julian Gray appears to have no future at Crystal Palace. The former Arsenal winger today joined Cardiff City on a month's loan, only a fortnight after he returned to Selhurst Park following unsuccessful attempts to persuade Blackburn and Charlton to sign him on a permanent basis.

Gray was willing to attempt at re-establishing himself at Palace but chairman Simon Jordan was adamant that there was no place for the 24-year-old.

Cardiff manager Lennie Lawrence moved in with the offer of a loan deal and Palace accepted it. If he impresses then Gray's move to Wales could become permanent.

Despite Gray's situation the thoughts of Palace manager Steve Kember are on tonight's home clash with Derby.

An alarming slide in form took Palace from contenders for the top spot to the fringe of the First Division relegation zone. But a clear-the-air meeting between Kember and his players in the wake of a 3-0 defeat at West Ham paid dividends two days later when Palace recorded their first win since late August with a 2-1 win over Gray's new club, Cardiff.

"We were back to our old selves," said Kember, who will be without four key players tonight through either injury or suspension.

Tony Popovic, Jamie Smith and Andrew Johnson are missing because of knocks while Hayden Mullins must serve a one-match suspension.

And Kember is wary of the threat posed by Derby under the guidance of George Burley. "He has gone into a difficult situation and done well," Kember said. But, hopefully, we can carry on where we left off against Cardiff.

"We have Rotherham in another home game on Saturday so this is a very big week."

It is also a big week for Palace's Northern Ireland international Michael Hughes. For more than a year, he has been without pay as both Birmingham and Wimbledon refused to accept responsibility for his salary.

However, on Thursday, Hughes will go to a tribunal who will decide who must pay him for the last year. In March 2002, Hughes, then at Wimbledon, joined Birmingham on loan and claims he was offered a three-year contract at St Andrews if Steve Bruce's team won promotion.

But he injured an ankle in the first month and Birmingham claim that made the deal invalid. Wimbledon argued he was a Birmingham player.

Crystal Palace v Derby, Selhurst Park, tonight, 8pm

MORE ABOUT

Cardiff (city)

Wales

Gray days at Palace are over

Read More