Manchester City are one of three clubs “considering a move” for Crystal Palace attacking midfielder Eberechi Eze, according to The Guardian.
The newspaper claims that the Eagles are bracing themselves for offers from the Premier League champions, Arsenal and Tottenham.
Eze reportedly has a £60m release clause in his contract; similar to the one that has been triggered by Bayern Munich for his teammate Michael Olise.
Whether the Cityzens are prepared to pay that much for the 25-year-old, it isn’t known. A lot may depend on the futures of Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva.
Why are City interested in signing Eze?
The England international had a very good season for Palace, scoring 11 goals and providing 6 assists in 32 appearances. TNT Sports’ Martin Keown is one of a number of pundits who have been effusive in their praise of the player. Speaking about Eze earlier this year, he said:
“I was at the training ground this time last year when Patrick Vieira was about to leave, and I spoke to Eze. I was immensely impressed with him. A million questions [he asked me]; he particularly wanted to know about work ethic, how I trained every day, how I wanted to be the best.”
“He was like, ‘Ok, I need to do more.’ It was very interesting; I watched with great interest afterwards, and he’s just gone on. Roy [Hodgson] in his ear, [is] presenting him in the right way. This guy is an immense talent, there’s no doubt about that.”
What is the situation with De Bruyne and Silva?
It has been reported this week that City are not expected to hold talks with De Bruyne over extending his contract. His current deal expires at the end of next season. The Belgian has expressed an interest in moving to Saudi Arabia so a transfer to the Middle East this summer can’t be ruled out.
Silva, meanwhile, has a £50m release clause in his contract, and it has been claimed that Bayern are ready to trigger it. Whether that happens, we shall have to wait and see.
