Crystal Palace undoubtedly have the best financial prowess among the all the clubs who are relegation threatened this season. Given that the appointment of Sam Allardyce hasn’t had an immediate impact on the team, the Eagles are desperate to bring more reinforcements this winter to get some quality to the team.
However, given the lack of players, one could get in the mid-season, the only options are to make move for players who haven’t seen much first team chances in the first half of the season. And the latest such player, Allardyce has identified, is Middlesbrough’s, Stewart Downing.
Things aren’t very smooth between the player and his manager, Aitor Karanka, at the moment. While the manager wants the players to leave on a loan and that too for a Championship club, Downing still sees himself fit for the Premier League and is eyeing a move accordingly.
Crystal Palace have been monitoring his situation for some time now and Allardyce, who has managed Downing previously during his stint at West Ham United, is pretty sure he could utilise him perfectly. At 32, Downing is past his prime, but his experience could be a huge bonus for Palace.
However, Crystal Palace is just below Middlesbrough in the Premier League and share the same target now as Boro, which is to survive relegation this season. Hence, Boro will under no condition want their player to leave for a club with the exact same goals in the domestic league.
Downing has had an uneasy relationship with Karanka since he returned to Teesside in the summer of 2015 and although there has not been a falling out, the former Aston Villa, Liverpool and West Ham winger has spent much of this season on the substitute’s bench and is extremely frustrated.
A Middlesbrough youth academy product, Downing has spent time in clubs like Liverpool, Aston Villa, and West Ham United, before returning to Middlesbrough. He has a whopping 448 appearances in English football, where he has scored 448 goals and provided 53 assists.
He still has two-and-a-half years remaining on his contract at Riverside and Boro wouldn’t want to part ways with him if it means moving to a Premier League club. Palace might face competition from Championship side Aston Villa but their Premier League status will more or less tilt it in Palace’s favour.
It looks like that a loan deal to a Championship club is on the cards and Palace are unlikely to get their hands on him unless they agree to splash something huge. And no club is likely to make a bold move for a player whose best years are gone.
