Dan Cook has been speaking about Crystal Palace’s interest in Ozan Kabak on the latest episode of the HLTCO podcast.
Kabak bid farewell to his Liverpool teammates as the Reds decided not to take up the option to buy the defender on a permanent basis following his loan spell with the club last season.
Will Patrick Vieira still be Crystal Palace's manager at the end of the season?
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It has been reported in The Guardian that the Eagles hold an interest in Kabak, who is set to be available for £10m-12m, following Schalke’s relegation from the Bundesliga last season. With Palace having seen six defenders leave as free agents, a cheap signing could be a smart piece of business.
Cook spoke at length about Palace’s interest in Kabak and how he would fit into the side.
“The Guardian report that we have now entered formal talks with Schalke over a potential deal when as I said yesterday, the belief within the press is that Schalke’s relegation from the Bundesliga will mean a willingness to accept as little as £10m-12m for Kabak’s services.
“We aren’t the only club that’s interested and obviously, Crystal Palace being linked with a defender that’s been at Liverpool that clearly has a huge amount of potential and pedigree within the game despite his younger years is something for the fans to get excited about.”
TIF Thoughts on Palace’s interest in Kabak…
If Palace are able to bring Kabak to the club for a fee of no more than £12 million, it could certainly prove to be a bargain signing considering the clubs he has played for at his age, which may be an indicator of potential.
Kabak was handed 13 appearances for Liverpool last season, which saw him muster up a 6.72 WhoScored rating, and although that is nothing overly impressive, considering he had to adapt to the league quickly and play alongside fellow inexperienced Premier League defender Nat Phillips, Kabak held himself well.
There appears to be a big emphasis on bringing in younger players this summer under Patrick Vieira, with the Frenchman having already signed Michael Olise and Marc Guehi, who are 19 and 21 years old respectively.
So Kabak would fit into what seems to be the Eagles’ transfer strategy, and you could argue it would be the most high-profile addition yet if they pulled it off.