Crystal Palace will now need to find a replacement for Joachim Andersen.
One week ago it looked like Marc Guehi would be the player who needed to be replaced this summer, now Crystal Palace will be scrambling to find someone to fill the gap left by Joachim Andersen.
It was reported on Tuesday night that an agreement had been reached between Palace and Fulham which sees Andersen make a switch.
Fulham will pay the Eagles £30m for the Danish international – a figure which should now spur Dougie Freedman and the club on to make some more additions this summer.
Now, the potential replacement for Andersen seems to have been identified and despite much speculation over Maxence Lacroix, Palace look likely to go another way.
- READ MORE: Crystal Palace confirmed signings, transfer ins and outs, loans and releases for 2024 summer window
Palace target Tomas Araujo as Andersen replacement
With Andersen looking likely to depart this week, Glasner will be hoping that a replacement is brought in as soon as possible.
Now, The Palace Way has reported that the Eagles are working on replacing the Denmark international – with Fabrizio Romano confirming the news to be true.
Tomas Araujo from Benfica is the player that Palace are ‘working on’ a deal for while Andersen is set to join Fulham this week.
Araujo has been on Palace’s list and is now one of the main names for the club to replace Andersen.
Losing Andersen is something few would have seen coming, but if he is to go then Araujo is one of the best options to replace him.
What kind of a player is Araujo?
Araujo has only just turned 22 and yet as a footballer he is as complete a defender as they come. The Portuguese youngster boasts impressive stats in almost every department you would want from a defender.
Tomas Araujo stats vs Centre-back positional peers
| Stat | Per 90 | Percentile |
| Shot creating actions | 1.65 | 97th |
| Passes attempted | 79.16 | 97th |
| Pass completion % | 89.3% | 89th |
| Progressive passes | 5.90 | 95th |
| Progressive carries | 1.10 | 88th |
| Tackles | 2.88 | 99th |
| Interceptions | 1.51 | 80th |
| Blocks | 1.51 | 82nd |
| Aerials won | 3.43 | 89th |
As seen here, Araujo is an almost perfect replacement for Andersen and actually boasts better stats in every department listed above.
That being said, playing for Benfica will see him on the ball more – but he quite obviously has the quality to thrive on the ball in Glasner’s system.
Araujo can play those long balls Andersen has made his own at Selhurst Park and therefore is a smart replacement.
