Crystal Palace have made an offer for Odsonne Edouard as the club faces a race against time to sign a striker Patrick Vieira so dearly needs.
According to the Scottish Sun, Crystal Palace have tabled an offer for Odsonne Edouard, with the bid reportedly in the region of £15 million. Patrick Vieira is simultaneously working on a deal to sign Eddie Nketiah of Arsenal, as the newly appointed manager is keen on adding a new forward within the next 24 hours.
Crystal Palace are yet to start firing on all cylinders under Vieira after a mixed start to their season. The French manager undertook a big summer rebuild at the club. Many of the senior squad members left after their deals expired, and the club have brought in young stars to replace them,
Defenders, midfielders and attackers have arrived on permanent or loan deals, but Vieira still wants to sign a striker before the transfer window shuts. There have been suggestions about several players, but the club has set their sights on two particular players.
Palace’ well-publicised chase of Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah is still a work in progress. Despite hitting many hurdles along the way, there remain hopes between both clubs to agree on a deal. Palace reportedly made a bid between £8-10 million, though Arsenal are holding out for a fee of £20 million.
Palace are willing to increase their offer to £12 million, and there are indications that Arsenal might cave in. However, Vieira is wary of a deal collapsing at the last moment and has another target in sight, in the form of Odsonne Edouard.
The Eagles have reportedly made a £15 million offer for the Celtic frontman, who is rated higher than Nketiah due to his exploits in Scottish Premiership. Nketiah, though, does bring significant Premier League experience, having featured in 38 top-flight appearances with Arsenal.
While Palace would have liked to make a lower offer, Celtic have already received requests in excess of £15 million from at least three clubs, including Rubin Kazan. Vieira’s team does have one advantage in the fact that Edouard seeks a switch to the Premier League and is reportedly willing to take a pay cut to make a move happen.
Palace certainly wants one of the two strikers before the transfer deadline and are inching closer on both fronts. The next hours leading to the deadline will give a clearer picture of further developments in these cases.
