After a mediocre start to the previous campaign, Crystal Palace did well to survive a relegation scare but the quality in the squad at Selhurst Park should see them compete with the best in the league. Roy Hodgson, the manager at Crystal Palace, is not totally convinced with the options at his disposal and is looking to upgrade on a few particular areas of his squad.
This has seen him linked with a wide variety of talents from all around Europe and the latest name doing the rounds is Maxime Gonalons. According to the same reports, Palace has launched a bid of £8.9m. At that price, he is an absolute steal for the Eagles and could be a match winner next season.
Born and brought up in France, Gonalons started his senior career with Lyon and made his debut for the club in 2009. He cemented his place in the first team in just his second season with the senior side and has played a total of 334 games for the French giants in all competitions, registering 13 goals and 12 assists playing mostly in a midfield role.
He also has eight international caps but has not played for France since 2015. He joined AS Roma just last summer, for a different challenge, and did pretty well in a central midfield role. He registered an assist in 12 league starts and at 29, he is a player that can be an asset for at least another couple of seasons.
Known for his strength in the air and his hold up play, Gonalons is a defensive-minded midfielder who adds tenacity to his side. He makes important interceptions in the middle of the park and can drop deep to dictate play in his own half. He is confident of his abilities and is a hard man to dribble past and will be a huge asset for a side like Crystal Palace.
Hodgson currently has Luka Milivojevic as his best options for the midfield role. James McArthur is a decent backup while Yohan Cabaye is no longer at the club. Jason Puncheon and Jairo Riedewald can play a role there while Jordan Mutch is also back from his loan spell in the Major League Soccer.
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However, none of those names compares to Gonalons and his experience, and the French ace can walk into the first team at Selhurst Park next season. Reports suggest that AS Roma are happy to let him leave at the right price, and already have replacements ready in Steven Nzonzi and Tanguy Ndombele, both of whom are being linked with a move to Roma. So hopefully this will be a deal which turns out to be win-win for everyone involved.
