Palace interested in Charlie Cresswell transfer

Crystal Palace have reportedly joined the race for Charlie Cresswell as the Eagles continue to assess defensive reinforcements ahead of the new season.

The Toulouse centre-back is attracting growing interest following an impressive campaign in Ligue 1 and Palace are now understood to be among several Premier League clubs monitoring his situation.

The Eagles did not sign another centre-back in January when they sold Marc Guehi to Manchester City for £20 million.

And now they are facing significant interest this summe from Chelsea, Liverpool and Bayern Munich for Maxence Lacroix.

So there needs to be at least one, more likely two centre backs this summer coming into Selhurst Park, as the Eagles look to build a squad with enough depth to manage both the Premier League and Europa League.

Cresswell has quickly emerged as an intriguing option for Palace this summer, with the 23-year-old impressing since he made the move from Leeds to Toulouse last summer.

He quickly made himself a regular starter and caught the eye for a number of reasons, but most notably for his aerial dominance, maturity beyond his years and also his ability to play out of the back, something that was a requirement under Oliver Glasner.

With Pierre Sage expected to play a very similar, if not identical, brand of football to that of Glasner, picking up where the Austrian left off, Creswell could well suit the new manager’s style as well as the Eagles’ former boss.

Cresswell would also fit the homegrown quota, and although that is not a huge priority as Palace have plenty that fit that bill anyway, it is a useful bonus for Cresswell to add depth while also ticking that box.

But it will not be easy for Palace to sign Cresswell, he has attracted attention for his excellent performances for Toulouse and from his England U21 days.

Manchester United are another Premier League club interested in signing the Preston-born centre back, while there is naturally interest from clubs in France, with Creswell slotting in so well in Ligue 1.

One of those clubs is Stade Rennais, who will also be in the Europa League next season, alongside Palace.

And, according to Ouest-France, it is those two clubs that are the most prominent in the pursuit of Cresswell, who would cost around the €25 million park according to the same source.

Rennes may currently be slightly ahead of Palace due to their longer-term pursuit of the former Leeds man, but Palace, with Premier League football and Europe too, may be able to storm in and snatch him away from France.