Crystal Palace may encounter further difficulties in their pursuit of a new manager after talks with Nuno Espirito Santo broke down, Matt Woosnam has warned.

The lowdown

Palace are searching for a successor to Roy Hodgson, who departed the club on the expiry of his contract at the end of the season.

The Eagles were said to be on the verge of appointing Nuno, fresh from his Wolverhampton Wanderers exit.

But talks broke down this week, with a report from The Times suggesting the Portuguese coach was demanding that he be allowed to bring as many as seven members of his backroom staff from Molineux.

The vacancies may simply not have been there for Nuno's contingent, given that only assistant coach Ray Lewington followed Hodgson out the door.

Palace finished 14th in the Premier League table, a healthy 16 points clear of the relegation zone.

The latest

Woosnam, a Palace correspondent for The Athletic, noted a concern that the club's other targets may now be reluctant to take up the offer.

They know that they weren't the club's first-choice, he explains.

One of their options is Valerien Ismael, who led Barnsley into the Championship's play-offs last season, but he's tipped to attract interest from rival suitors.

The process is threatening to 'linger on' with time 'ticking away'.

The verdict

Palace may need to look a little way down their latest of candidates and compromise, because this uncertainty must be resolved.

According to Football London, the club are in talks with a number of out-of-contract players over extensions, but will those players realistically commit when they don't know who's going to be in charge?

The club's ability to devise a recruitment plan must also be significantly hindered by the current state of limbo - how can you plan a squad rebuild without knowing what sort of manager the players will be working under?

If Palace run into trouble next season, we might well think back to these delays as a major reason why.

In other news, Palace are keen on this promising centre-half