Crystal Palace’s recruitment over the past couple of years has seen them sign some excellent talent who have made a huge impact on the first team or even bank the club a huge profit.
Michael Olise is just one example of a player who succeeded at Selhurst Park before leaving for a sizeable profit, with his funds undoubtedly making the club more sustainable.
The Frenchman arrived in a £8m move from Reading back in 2021, before featuring 90 times for the Eagles in all competitions, securing a £50m move to European giants Bayern Munich this summer.
Adam Wharton is another name who has starred for the Eagles in recent times, arriving as an unknown quantity from Blackburn Rovers in a £18m deal back in January.
However, just nine months on from his move to the Premier League, the 20-year-old has taken to the division like a duck to water, earning himself his first-ever England call-up for the Euro 2024 squad over the summer.
Their recent recruitment has been impressive, but they also managed to secure a move for another talent back in January 2017, with the signing enjoying a successful spell at Selhurst Park.
Patrick van Aanholt’s stats for Crystal Palace
Dutch left-back Patrick van Aanholt joined Palace in a £14m deal from Sunderland seven years ago, with the now 34-year-old cementing himself as the club’s first choice in that area over several years.
He amassed a total of 134 appearances for the Eagles over a four-year spell in the capital, scoring 14 times – a reasonable tally for a full-back it has to be said.
Van Aanholt was part of a side that continuously secured the club’s Premier League status, producing some memorable individual moments along the way, including a superb free-kick against Newcastle United back in 2020.
However, he would depart the club in the summer of 2021 at the end of his contract, joining Turkish side Galatasaray on a free transfer – ending his spell with the Eagles.
Whilst he was an excellent servant for the club, he moved to the club during the same period as a youth talent was on the radar of owner Steve Parish, with the club now ruing the failure to secure a deal for the talent.
The player who Crystal Palace missed out on
Alphonso Davies has rapidly emerged as one of the leading left-backs in world football despite his tender age of just 23 – starring on a regular basis for Bayern Munich.
Davies, who’s now teammates with former Palace star Olise, moved to the European giants back in 2018 from MLS Vancouver Whitecaps for a fee in the region of just £16.6m – a bargain given his current market value.
The Canadian international is now valued at £42m as per Transfermarkt, with Palace undoubtedly missing out by not completing a deal for the superstar when he was a youngster.
Josko Gvardiol
£63m
Theo Hernandez
£50m
Nuno Mendes
£46m
Alphonso Davies
£42m
Federico Dimarco
£42m
Current owner Parish admitted that he had the opportunity to sign the left-back as a youngster, claiming that a work permit scuppered a potential move.
In an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung via GOAL a couple of years ago, he said:
“When he was 15, 16 in a football school in Edmonton, where my sister lives, she recommended him to me.
“We flew to Canada especially to see the player. We wanted to sign him, but once again we couldn’t get a work permit in England. True story! I still have all the mails. I’m sure he would have been interested in coming to us – and we were very early!”
It’s really unfortunate that the club were unable to complete a deal for the talent considering the heights he’s gone on to reach since his failed move to the Eagles seven years ago, having been dubbed the “best left-back in the world” by Alexi Lalas.
However, unfortunately for Parish and the supporters, Davies will go down as yet another case of what could’ve been had they completed a move for the elite-level talent.
Crystal Palace wanted to sign £15m PL flop but ended up with Mateta
Palace nearly ended up with PL flop, but got Mateta instead
ByConnor HoldenOct 3, 2024