Oliver Glasner may be helping shape the Premier League title race in a very unexpected way. The Crystal Palace manager spent part of his week away from football by taking tennis lessons with former British No. 1 Kyle Edmund at Wimbledon. Now, just days later, Glasner and Palace could hand Arsenal a huge advantage if they beat Manchester City on Wednesday night. Arsenal are currently five points ahead of City. If Palace win at the Etihad, Mikel Arteta's side can officially seal the Premier League title with a victory against Burnley next Monday. While the pressure kept growing around the title race, Glasner decided to clear his mind by stepping onto a tennis court instead of a football pitch.
The 51-year-old Austrian coach, who is set to leave Crystal Palace next month, visited the All England Club earlier this week after being invited by an Irish Palace supporter who owns a season ticket at Selhurst Park. There, he played doubles with Kyle Edmund, the former world No. 14 and 2018 Australian Open semifinalist.
Glasner openly laughed at his own performance and admitted Edmund completely outplayed him.
"I played with Kyle Edmund. Once 14th in the world. We played doubles. He was so good. I was so bad," Glasner said.
"I honestly had a terrible game. I was really upset and disappointed with my tennis game but I've more time in June to improve it.
"Maybe I come back for the Championships in July."
Oliver Glasner says Kyle Edmund tennis session helped him learn about pressure before Manchester City clash
Even though the tennis session looked like a fun break from football, Glasner said there was a serious reason behind it. He explained that he enjoys learning from athletes outside football, especially about handling pressure before big moments.
"I like to meet people outside of football. It feels like 350 days. It's football, football, football," Glasner said.
"And then you get a little bit blind when you're just always the same.
"I like to meet people outside football. Former tennis players and tennis coaches, listening to the mindset, their experiences, dealing with pressure, dealing with situations, preparing for a big game.
"You know, being the underdog when you play a Nadal or Djokovic or Federer."
The Palace boss also joked about one major difference between football and tennis coaching.
"Also I got a very nice insight. In tennis, they hire their coach – and then sack him if they don't like him. I think the average is three months in tennis. In football, it's maybe a year."
Glasner now faces a packed final stretch with Crystal Palace. Along with the Manchester City match, Palace still have league games against Brentford and Arsenal. The club also has a UEFA Conference League final against Spanish side Rayo Vallecano coming soon.
Despite Palace sitting 15th in the table, Glasner said his team is fully focused and understands what is at stake.
"Our influence in the title race will be less than VAR," he said.
"I told the players we have two-and-a-half weeks until our biggest game.
"It's not possible to switch off and then switch on two days before the final."
