Sam Allardyce has confirmed he will look into the possibility of signing Carl Jenkinson on loan from Arsenal
Speaking ahead of the game against Arsenal, new Crystal Palace manager Sam Allardyce admitted he was interested in securing the services of a player he managed at West Ham.
Allardyce drew his first game against Watford earlier this week and is looking to mould the squad more to his liking as he looks to turn Crystal Palace’s fortunes around.
Jenkinson – who signed for Arsenal from Charlton in 2011 – previously spent time under Sam Allardyce when he was signed on loan by the then West Ham boss.
Allardyce was in charge when Jenkinson was signed and is clearly a fan of the right-back. Speaking ahead of the game against Arsenal, Allardyce had this to say
“We haven’t got enough numbers at the moment,” he said, according to the Mirror. “If we were all fit, it wouldn’t be too bad but certainly the chairman would like to sign a couple of players if possible. We have one loan left – we will look to see if he (Jenkinson) is available.”
Jenkinson featured 5 times for Arsenal this year before being dropped from the first team, after a few nervy showings led to Arsene Wenger choosing to place faith in Gabriel instead.
At 24 years of age, Jenkinson’s time at Arsenal is looking to be at an end after he has failed to impose himself at the Emirates when given a chance.
Hector Bellerin’s impressive rise to being arguably the best right-back in the league means that he is a sure starter when fit, and Jenkinson is nowhere near the Spaniard’s level.
The England international was linked with moves to both Aston Villa as well as West Ham, who signed him on loan him for two consecutive years.
However, given his previous relationship with Sam Allardyce, it is likely that Jenkinson will prefer to move to Crystal Palace who are obviously keen.
Arsene Wenger will likely have no problem loaning him out to Palace as they are not direct competitors, and it seems even more likely that Jenkinson will finally be sold at the end of the loan deal.
Any talk about a loan will have to wait until after the New Year however, with Arsenal taking on Crystal Palace tomorrow evening at the Emirates.
