Crystal Palace are in the market for a new central midfielder.
There is interest from the Eagles in Southampton No.24 Shea Charles – according to Sky Sports – although Leeds have already seen two bids rejected for the Northern Ireland international.
Before links to the Manchester City academy graduate emerged, the BBC claimed that Crystal Palace were holding talks with Wolves over the signing of Joao Gomes – after the Old Gold suffered relegation.
Atletico Madrid had looked set to land the Brazil international having advanced in talks – but after pivoting to sign Morten Hjulmand in a £34m move from Sporting CP instead, the UEFA Conference League winners could now have a second chance at striking a deal with Wolves.
Has Oliver Glasner ruined his Crystal Palace legacy by moving to Nottingham Forest? 🤔
Door opens for Crystal Palace to sign Joao Gomes
An interesting detail here is that Matt Hobbs – Sporting Director at Crystal Palace – was the man who signed Gomes for Wolves in a £15m move from Flamengo back in January 2023.
The South American went on to become a key man at Molineux, winning the Player of the Season award at Wolves for the 2024/25 campaign while maturing into one of the most effective midfielders in the Premier League.
Gomes even captained Wolves for the first time last season in a 1-1 draw against Brighton.
Make no mistake about it, this will still be a tough deal for Hobbs to arrange considering the Brazilian is under contract at Wolves until July 2030 – and also given the fact Atletico Madrid had agreed a lofty fee of £39m before turning to Hjulmand, according to Sky Sports.
It will therefore be tough to bring Wolves down from that figure. Southampton want £30m for the aforementioned Charles, which feels like the highest we would go to buy a new central midfielder now Daichi Kamada has signed a new one-year contract.
How are we feeling about this news, Crystal Palace fans? 🔴 🔵
Could be one of the most important deals we do this summer 🦅
Nevertheless, with Gomes now in limbo after Atletico Madrid walked away from the deal, Crystal Palace have a chance – especially after those early talks in April and with Hobbs overseeing recruitment.
