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Right now, the Crystal Palace faithful will be devastated that the Premier League season is coming to an end, given their recent form.
Oliver Glasner has completely transformed the club, with both the players and fans buying into his philosophy and approach.
The Eagles are flying, evading defeat since the start of April and winning five of their last six, including a 4-0 demolition of Manchester United.
However, due to the incredible performances, it’s put numerous stars in the shop window ahead of the summer, and therefore, the new boss will look to bolster the team in the likely event that key players depart.
Crystal Palace want a new midfielder
According to a report from journalist Bobby Manzi, Palace are interested in signing Gabriel Sara of Norwich City.
The Eagles have been monitoring the midfielder, even sending scouts to watch him recently.
It’s reported that if a move for Sara is to take place, then a fee of at least £20m will be demanded to let him go.
However, it may not be a simple move, with the Brazilian still having two years left on his contract and other Premier League clubs also keeping an eye on him.
Why Sara could become the next Eberechi Eze
It goes without saying that Eberechi Eze is one of the biggest jewels at Selhurst Park, and his influence on the side is all but irreplaceable.
The England international has had to deal with two injuries this campaign, missing eight games in total, but he’s still racked up 23 starts in the Premier League.
Over these matches, the number ten has scored nine goals and provided three assists, which has led to the interest of other Premier League clubs, who could make a move for the 25-year-old this summer.
However, his potential exit could be eased with the signature of Sara, who has also been excellent over his 46 games in the Championship.
Sara vs Eze 23/24 League Stats | ||
---|---|---|
Stats | Sara | Eze |
Goals | 13 | 9 |
Assists | 12 | 3 |
Shots (per game) | 2.2 | 3 |
Key passes (per game) | 2.6 | 2 |
Tackles (per game) | 2 | 1.2 |
Balls recovered (per game) | 4.9 | 4.9 |
Duels won (per game) | 4.8 | 6 |
Via Sofascore |
As displayed above, there are plenty of similarities between Eze and Sara, which makes the Norwich star the ideal replacement for the Eagles attacking midfielder.
For example, both players provide a huge direct threat via their ability to score goals, while they can also hurt the opponent via creativity, as shown by their goals, assists, and key passes, which is why football analyst Ben Mattinson has described Sara as “ridiculously talented” – as well as hailing him as a possible “Eze replacement“.
The two midfielders are also extremely well-rounded, as their out-of-possession work is immense, as highlighted by their tackles, balls recovered, and duels won, but they’re also willing to take risks on the ball, enabling them to create moments of magic out of nothing.
Even Ben Mattinson has referenced the duo’s similarities in terms of their “dynamism and off the ball tenacity,” which often separates Eze from his positional peers.
However, the main difference is that Sara is far more versatile, having shown that he can play across the midfield this season, mainly in a double pivot, but he can also play out wide.
Overall, Palace have created a blueprint for signing Championship gems and turning them into stars, such as Michael Olise, Adam Wharton, and, of course, Eze, and Steve Parish will hope that Sara can be the next example of their excellent scouting.
The incredibly talented gem has firmly established himself in Glasner’s best XI.