Crystal Palace are interested in a deal to sign a striker who is already in the Premier League in January, according to a fresh report.
Crystal Palace eyeing Mateta replacements
The Eagles have Jordan Ayew, Odsonne Edouard and Jean-Philippe Mateta as their three natural options at centre-forward in the building as it stands, but there’s a chance that the latter could be heading for the exit door next month. The Athletic’s Matt Woosnam has revealed that Roy Hodgson’s frontman is attracting interest from abroad ahead of the upcoming transfer window, so should he indeed end up departing, the manager will have to enter the market to find a suitable replacement.
Arsenal’s Eddie Nketiah has worked his way up through his club’s various youth ranks to get promoted to their first-team, where he’s since gone on to make a total of 154 senior appearances to date (Transfermarkt – Nketiah statistics).
However, Mikel Arteta is reportedly open to offers for England’s international in order to generate funds so that he can sign a new striker himself, so with the 24-year-old having been placed on the chopping block, the Eagles hierarchy have been alerted to his potential availability.
Crystal Palace interested in Nketiah
According to Football Transfers, Crystal Palace want to sign Nketiah and are believed to have already made their admiration known to Arsenal ahead of January.
“Crystal Palace have expressed keen interest in securing the services of Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah during the January transfer window, FootballTransfers has been told. Sources close to the matter have told us of Palace's interest in the young forward as they look to find more goals next year in the second half of the season.”
Nketiah is a "pure goalscorer"
In the Premier League this season, Nketiah has clocked up eight involvements (five goals and three assists), from 16 appearances, showing how prolific he can be in the final third, and he’s able to pose a constant threat to the opposition’s defence with his trickery.
Sponsored by Under Armour, Hodgson’s target has recorded 28 shots over the course of the current campaign which is the third-highest total throughout his squad, slightly behind Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard, displaying what a standout performer he is despite playing less minutes (FBRef – Arsenal statistics).
The Lewisham-born talent has been described as a “pure goalscorer” by football scout Jacek Kulig which is proven by his impressive record on limited starts, and there’s a chance that his admirers could have an advantage should they decide to try and get a deal over the line.
This is because Nketiah shares the same representative, Elite Project Group Ltd, as Malcolm Ebiowei (Crystal Palace agents), so this existing connection that his management already have to the club could give them a slight edge during negotiations when trying to convince him to make the move to SE25.
