Dan Cook has been speaking on the HLTCO podcast about how Crystal Palace selling Eberechi Eze for £50m this summer could be great news for Patrick Vieira’s project at Selhurst Park.
Eze has had a miserable 2021/22 season with Palace, starting just one league game all season – largely down to injury. However, even since he’s returned, the attacker has had to settle for cameo appearances off the bench.
Have Crystal Palace underachieved?
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Therefore, this has led to reports claiming Newcastle United could move for the 23-year-old in the summer if they remain in the Premier League, with a £45m price tag being touted for someone that’s coming off the back of an injury which saw him sidelined for 162 days.
However, Cook believes that a price tag like that would still be too low, envisaging a scenario where Eze would leave for a little more as it would allow Vieira to take his Palace side to the next level.
He said: “If you have a full summer window where potentially Eberechi Eze leaves for say, £50m, we are going to spend, I would imagine, at least £20m.
“So if you throw in another £30m on top of that, you can really massage the squad to exactly how you want it to look and potentially be far better equipped to play the style of football that Patrick Vieira prefers over the course of an entire campaign.”
TIF Thoughts on Ebere Eze’s future at Crystal Palace…
It was a superb debut Premier League season for Eze last season with four goals and six assists within 29 league starts, however, that cruel injury blow at the end of the campaign is still something he is clearly trying to get over.
Eze hasn’t been helped by the arrivals of Odsonne Edouard and Michael Olise over the summer, with the pair having registered a combined total of eight goals and eight assists in the Premier League.
So, if Eze doesn’t feel there’s going to be sufficient game time on offer at Selhurst Park and the very wealthy Newcastle come calling, it may be difficult for the player, fans and club to all part ways, but it may well be best to ensure he fulfils his potential in the event Vieira continues to prefer other options in the final third.
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