FREEDMAN ON FRIDAY: I'm in the middle of building Crystal Palace up

Crystal Palace manage Dougie Freedman's weekly column for the Croydon Advertiser

MY NAME was touted as odds-on favourite for the managerial vacancy at Bolton Wanderers on Tuesday, but first of all, I'm not a betting man so it doesn't make a lot of sense to me what they're talking about.

Speculation comes with this job; either you get sacked or you get rave reviews. Either way, I can't comment on maybe some young guy in his bedroom putting money on me getting the Bolton job – it's just ridiculous.

The simple facts are that I'm in the middle of building Crystal Palace Football Club, and when I picked the club up, we were in a dark place.

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I think I'm halfway there in getting the club the way I want it to be, and I'm not the sort of guy to leave jobs half done.

It's clear to say I'm halfway building something that I'd like to finish.

I have to say, though, if the Scottish national job came along one day, yes, I would take it, of course.

I think that's something that is built inside you, but hopefully it won't be for another 20 years' time.

I think to be a national team manager, you've got to be in the later years of your management and if that was to happen to me, I'd be very proud to do that.

Loan striker David Goodwillie couldn't settle in London so he's gone back to Blackburn Rovers. I also explained to him that Glenn Murray is in the form of his life and I couldn't drop him.

It was just in the interest of both parties that he went back to his parent club.

That leaves us a striker light, so I am going to look at the loan market again and try to do something, but I won't be going out to just get anybody.

I will be looking to get maybe one or two players I feel can help us, probably youngsters from the Premier League, and I've been after one or two for a while, but it's just about waiting for the right moment.

I think Wilfried Zaha is worth more than the £20m price tag that co-chairman Steve Parish was quoted with saying earlier this week.

When I see Wilfried, especially in the company of some of the England U21s who join clubs for an awful lot of money, then I think he's got to be worth at least that amount.

He's playing with a lot of confidence and you're always going to get speculation when you've got good players. I had that 20 years ago when I was a 19-year-old, so the way to do it is to brush it off and continue.

He's happy, confident and on a long contract at Palace so there's no need to sell him. When we think it's right, we'll sit down to make a decision, but I don't see it happening in the near future.

We face a tough game against Millwall tomorrow, and at the end of the day, you can't ignore it's a derby match.

The atmosphere will be a little bit different, the expectation will be a bit higher and you've got to be in control of your emotions.

I've got to make sure we compete with the best eleven competitors out there, because we've got enough quality to win it.

Dougie Freedman was talking exclusively to sports reporter Mark Ritson.