Crystal Palace. (Sebastian Frej/Getty Images)
Crystal Palace’s recent success has come at a heavy cost, with the club steadily stripped of key figures over the last few seasons.
The Eagles stunned English football in 2025 by lifting the FA Cup — the first major trophy in their history — before adding the Community Shield a year later, but maintaining that momentum has proven brutally difficult.
The dismantling began with the departure of Michael Olise to Bayern Munich in 2024. Palace managed to regroup, but last summer brought another seismic blow as Eberechi Eze completed a high-profile move to Arsenal. The disruption continued in January when captain Marc Guéhi was prised away by Manchester City, leaving a leadership void at Selhurst Park.
Jean-Philippe Mateta also appeared destined to follow, only for a proposed switch to AC Milan to collapse at the medical stage. However, with Oliver Glasner expected to step down as manager at the end of the campaign, Mateta is still widely tipped to move on in the summer.
Against that backdrop, Palace are now bracing themselves for yet another significant exit.
Kamada to Leave Palace
Daichi Kamada is expected to leave Crystal Palace when his contract expires at the end of the season, according to Sky Sports.
The Japan international arrived at Selhurst Park on a free transfer in 2024, a signing heavily influenced by Oliver Glasner after their successful spell together at Eintracht Frankfurt, where they lifted the Europa League in 2022.
Despite that connection, there have been no meaningful talks over a renewal, and all indications point towards Kamada departing once his deal runs out.
Now 29, the midfielder – who Glasner once called “important” – endured a difficult settling-in period in south London but grew into his role as the season progressed. He proved particularly influential during Palace’s historic FA Cup triumph, playing an important part in the club’s first-ever major honour.
Kamada has recently returned from a hamstring injury, making his comeback in the weekend victory over Brighton, but his future appears to lie elsewhere.
Kamada’s anticipated exit feels emblematic of Palace’s current reality — a club that has enjoyed unprecedented success, yet struggled to hold onto the core figures responsible for it. Losing another experienced and trusted performer will only add to the scale of the rebuild awaiting whoever takes charge next at Selhurst Park.
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