Crystal Palace have spent much of the January transfer window on the periphery of the action – which, admittedly, has been few and far between – but have at least whirred into gear in this late stage.
Two days ago, the £8.5m signing of free-scoring right-back Daniel Munoz was announced, the Colombian joining from Genk, while the acquisition of Adam Wharton from Blackburn is all but concluded – a most exciting deal.
Roy Hodgson would still relish some added firepower and there is the chance of a former Premier League forward returning to London by the end of the day.
Palace eyeing last-gasp deal
According to the Mirror's Ryan Taylor, Palace are among the contenders – Everton and Luton Town are also named – to sign Ajax forward Chuba Akpom today, with sources revealing that a loan move is probable.
Crystal Palace could sign their best winger since Zaha
Roy Hodgson could look to sign a new attacker before the end of Thursday.
ByTom LeverJan 31, 2024
Signing for the Dutch giants from Middlesbrough in a £12m deal last summer, Akpom has struggled to integrate into a lacklustre Ajax side this season but scored goals for fun on Teesside last term and might now wish to try his hand in the Premier League once again.
Chuba Akpom is a Mateta upgrade
Akpom, aged 28, has posted nine goals from 20 matches in the Netherlands but has only been handed three starting appearances in the Eredivisie and is subsequently being touted with a move away.
Not a bad return, eh? And given that he wreaked devastation on Championship defences last season, scoring 29 goals in 42 appearances for Boro, Palace might be wise in making a move to ease the striking burden from the likes of Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze.
Odsonne Edouard has not yet returned to prominence since his injury and Jean-Philippe Mateta has only clinched two goals from 19 outings in the English top-flight this term, hardly evoking confidence for the goal-shy Eagles.
Season
Apps
Goals
Assists
23/24
19
2
4
22/23
29
2
0
21/22
22
5
1
20/21
7
1
0
Source: Transfermarkt
The 26-year-old is only averaging 0.7 shots and 2.1 ball recoveries per game, as per Sofascore, which basically underlines the lack of energy and application, a combination of such as well as being nullified by defenders.
Akpom, by comparison, is averaging 1.7 shots per game in the Eredivisie despite his lack of match action and took 2.6 per fixture in the Championship last year.
As per FBref, the 6 foot striker ranks among the top 1% of positional peers across divisions similar to the Dutch Eredivisie for goals scored, the top 5% for pass completion and the top 7% for aerial duels won per 90, showcasing his effectiveness as a reliable centre-forward.
With creative geniuses such as Olise and Eze behind him, Akpom could be the perfect focal point to pump some fresh attacking impetus into Selhurst Park and ensure that Hodgson engineers a successful end to the campaign, surging up the table and doing so with style.
Mateta has been unable to find success in such circumstances and this is indicative of his inability to find space and break the net with placed shots, and Palace simply have to act to shore up their biggest issue.
