Crystal Palace will now do one thing in the January market after Cheick Doucoure injury
Crystal Palace may face a problem in the January transfer window, as they are now desperate to add a midfielder to the squad following an injury to Chieck Doucoure.
Doucoure has been a key part of the Palace midfield, but will miss the majority of the season with a long-term injury he picked up against Luton last week.
It is clear that Palace need to replace him, despite Chris Richards delivering a promising performance in midfield against West Ham yesterday.
A report from journalist Alan Nixon has revealed that Palace are keen on adding loan players to the squad in January, as permanent deals for some targets may be too costly at this stage.
“Crystal Palace are looking at the loan market to find a couple of new players for Roy Hodgson,” he wrote on his Patreon.
“The Eagles were chasing a right-back and a striker but their plans have been disrupted by the loss of Cheick Doucoure for the rest of the season.
“Now Palace are desperately looking for short-term fixes in midfield as top targets like Blackburn’s Adam Wharton are rated too dear.
“Palace can take two on loan from the Premier League and will try for that market.”
The fact that Palace are seemingly limited to loan deals could be a real problem, as there do not appear to be many options available on the market who can replace Doucoure’s defensive output.
One player who is available is Manchester United’s Donny van de Beek, as the midfielder is almost certain to leave the club. Whether United would be prepared to accept another loan deal for the Dutchman, who spent a short period at Everton before, is a different issue.
Palace will need to be creative when examining the market. There are not many players whom Premier League rivals would willingly loan to the club, and those who could be options may not be players who could improve the quality of the starting XI.
The club may need to look abroad for potential bargain deals or loans of fringe players or prospect stars. This is not an easy task, and Doucoure is not an easy player to replace. What is clear though, is that Palace do need extra bodies arriving in the January window.
