Patrick Vieira to take charge at Palace

Patrick Vieira looks set to take over as Crystal Palace manager after agreeing a deal to succeed Roy Hodgson at Selhurst Park.

The former France international - who has been out of work since being sacked by Ligue 1 side Nice in December - has held productive talks with the Palace co-chairman Steve Parish this week and is expected to be confirmed as the manager within the next 24 hours.

It would bring to an end a difficult recruitment process for Parish, who broke off talks with Nuno Espírito Santo before the former Borussia Dortmund manager Lucien Favre turned down the post on the day he was due to sign a three-year contract last week. Despite attempts to make the 63-year-old change his mind, it is understood that Palace have settled on Vieira and hope that he can be appointed in time to be granted a work permit to begin pre-season training next week.

Vieira, who won 107 caps for France and captained Arsenal's Invincibles in 2004, appeared on Palace's initial list of candidates along with Frank Lampard, Burnley's Sean Dyche and Valérien Ismaël, who has left Barnsley to take over at West Bromwich Albion. Vieira managed the MLS side New York City before moving to Nice in 2018. - Guardian