"Of course": Will Hughes says he really misses two players Crystal Palace let go

Will Hughes has now revealed that he really misses two players who Crystal Palace let go.

The Crystal Palace No.19 is now in his third season at Selhurst Park following a £6m move from Watford in August 2021.

It has been a rollercoaster ride for the man from Weybridge, who has already played under three different managers in Patrick Vieira, Roy Hodgson and Oliver Glasner – four if you include Paddy McCarthy’s interim stints.

In just three years, Will Hughes has seen plenty of turnover in personnel at Crystal Palace, and there are two players he still misses…

Will Hughes misses two players Crystal Palace let go

Well, the 29-year-old spoke to Crystal Palace’s official website about the departures of Luka Milivojevic and James McArthur.

Both the Glaswegian and the Serbian left Selhurst Park in the summer of 2023 when their contracts expired, having amassed 253 and 198 appearances respectively for the Eagles.

We also lost Wilfried Zaha, so it really was a significant summer in terms of losing senior figures.

Speaking about McArthur and Milivojevic, Hughes said: “You’re always going to miss players and characters like that.

“Macca and Luka were big voices around the changing room, so of course you are going to miss that to some extent, but we’ve still got experienced players that have come through – Schluppy, Wardy, Tonks – and so there is still guidance through that.”

Dougie Freedman managed to replace this lost experience with a senior figure in Jefferson Lerma, who arrived from Bournemouth on a free transfer with 100 Premier League appearances under his belt at the time.

The less experienced – but incredibly talented – Adam Wharton then arrived in the January transfer window in an £18m deal from Blackburn, so in terms of bodies, McArthur and Milivojevic have been replaced quite swiftly at Crystal Palace.

Oliver Glasner could lose more experience

The summer in which Hughes arrived at Selhurst Park also saw plenty of experienced heads depart, such as Gary Cahill, James McCarthy, Andros Townsend, Mamadou Sakho, Patrick van Aanholt and Scott Dann depart.

A similar exodus could occur this summer.

As many as eight players find themselves out of contract at Crystal Palace this summer – including Hughes. They can all be seen down below.

Therefore, Freedman may have to oversee another squad overhaul this summer – and will need to balance his recruitment between finding young talents, as well as experienced figures.

Whatever happens, it looks set to be an eventful summer for Crystal Palace.

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