Crystal Palace podcaster Dan Cook has claimed that Sheffield United midfielder, and soon-to-be free agent, John Lundstram has been “on the radar” of Crystal Palace for a while.
It’s been well known that Lundstram rejected a new deal from the Blades as he seemingly looks like he is planning a fresh start away from Yorkshire.
Currently valued at £6.3 million (via Transfermarkt), Lundstram had a successful debut season in the Premier League as he finished with five goals and three assists with Chris Wilder and Sheffield United coming so close to securing European football for the first time in the club’s history. However, a poor second season, not just for Lundstram, but Sheffield United as a collective, saw them finish rock bottom of the Premier League as they whimpered back to the Championship.
But with a player of Lundstram’s quality officially out of contract from 1st July, it would make sense for a Premier League team to try and secure his signature, after all, the return he got for the Blades in his first season in the Premier League proved that he is more than capable of performing at this level.
Speaking on the HLTCO podcast, Cook issued his take on the reports to emerge in recent months he is someone the Eagles have their eye on:
“John Lundstram is definitely someone that has been on Palace’s radar for some time now. And given the fact that he’s soon to be a free agent – or indeed is now a free agent – we can make strides to try and bring him in. I do find it a little bit baffling that we would be looking to do our recruitment in terms of players like Lundstram without a managerial candidate actually secured.”
TIF Thoughts on Crystal Palace’s links with John Lundstram…
For Crystal Palace, the signing of Lundstram would make sense for many reasons; not least of all the minimal risk involved in the deal as there is no transfer fee involved for a player out of contract. For Lundstram, the ability to wipe the slate clean and have a fresh start after some below-par performances towards the end of his time at Sheffield United saw many fans accuse him of downing tools.
Overall, this could be a great deal for both parties, especially as Palace have 16 players coming to the end of their contracts, and money that is spent renewing those contracts will presumably come out of the transfer budget.