Davids explains Palace switch

Eagles' history and fans' plea convinced midfielder

Last updated: 27th August 2010   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Davids explains Palace switch

Davids: Explains Palace switch

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Dutch legend Edgar Davids says Crystal Palace's history and an appeal from fans on his Twitter page convinced him to join The Eagles.

The 37-year-old midfielder, who boasts Ajax, AC Milan, Juventus, Barcelona, Inter Milan and Tottenham among his former clubs, has come out of retirement on a pay-as-you-play deal at Selhurst Park.

Davids' arrival has caused quite a stir in South London and the former Holland international insists he can play his part in helping the club up the Championship ladder.

He knows all about the club's history as he was a big fan of Ian Wright and Mark Bright during the club's glory days when they reached their one and only FA Cup final in the 1989/90 campaign.

However, the club was also brought to his attention by one of his Twitter followers who urged him to try and help the Eagles when they needed fresh investment after going into administration.

"Why Palace? Two reasons - first, the history. When I was young I used to watch Ian Wright and Mark Bright on television, they always played well and that stuck with me," explained Davids.

Have fun

"And second, on my Twitter page there was a guy who talked about Palace and he asked 'The club has a problem, can you help us out?'. I told my followers to support Palace and, after a couple of weeks, I got a tweet from him to say 'We're saved, thank you'.

"I had been training with Ajax, and it was going so well that a friend who also knows the Palace coach accelerated the process. Sometimes you miss football and sub-consciously maybe I thought I didn't belong in an office.

"I already had a home in London, my heart lies in a big city, so it made sense for me to join a London club. I don't know how many games I will play, but I want to have fun and enjoy myself.

"I know the Championship is a fast-paced, competitive league and I don't under-estimate the standard or the physical demands. I might last two games, I might stay here for two years and finish my career with Palace, I don't know.

"But if I can help to cultivate the young talent we have, and help them grow into the players they are capable of becoming, it will be worthwhile.

"For now I'm not thinking about promotion - let's exploit the ability of these young players and see where it can take us. I know my heart still lies in playing because I am irritated by the same things that annoyed me 10 years ago."