Crystal Palace could land ideal Olise replacement in "outstanding" 20m ace
Crystal Palace could land ideal Olise replacement in "outstanding" 20m ace
The trouble with surging up the Premier League table is that other teams start to pick off your best talent, and unfortunately for Crystal Palace, that looks to be happening to them this summer.
Oliver Glasner has only been in the job for four months but is already set to lose Michael Olise to German behemoths Bayern Munich, and Tottenham Hotspur are ominously circling above Eberechi Eze.
However, with the club now looking like a great environment to play football, attracting exciting players should be a lot easier, and one of the stars touted for a move to Selhurst Park could be the ideal Olise replacement.
Crystal Palace transfer news
A report last month from journalist Bobby Manzi revealed that Palace were interested in Norwich City's Brazilian midfielder Gabriel Sara following his magnificent form in the second tier, which was then corroborated by the BBC a couple of weeks later.
The good news for the Eagles is that Manzi's initial report claimed that the Canaries would be tempted by offers in excess of £20m.
However, the bad news is that more recent reports from this week suggest that Serie A giants AS Roma are now keen to bring the player to Italy in the coming weeks.
It could be a complicated deal to get over the line, but Sara looks like an exceptionally talented player, and if Steve Parish and Co can get ahead of the Giallorossi, then they absolutely should, as he could be the ideal Olise replacement.
Why Sara would be a great Olise replacement
Unfortunately for Palace, it's unlikely that they will be able to find a like-for-like replacement for Olise in the market this summer simply because the Frenchman is such an exceptional player.
However, Sara certainly seems to be someone who could provide Glasner with some of the attacking impetus he'll lose following the former Reading man's departure.
For example, in his 53 appearances for Norwich last season, he scored 14 goals and provided 13 assists, meaning he maintained an impressive average of a goal involvement every 1.9 games. In comparison, the South Londoner's star attacker scored ten goals and provided six assists in 19 games, equating to a staggering average of a goal involvement every 1.1 games.
Now, the Hammersmth-born gem's numbers are more impressive. However, it should be noted that the Brazilian started 15 games in defensive midfield and still managed to provide a goal contribution more than once every other game, suggesting he could become a potent force under the tutelage of the progressive Glasner.
Moreover, according to FBref, which compares players in a similar position across the next best 14 competitions, the "outstanding" 25-year-old, as dubbed by former manager David Wagner, sits in the top 2% of midfielders for non-penalty goals, expected assists and shot-creating actions, the top 3% for non-penalty expected goals and assists, the top 4% for assists and the top 6% for total shots, all per 90.
Ultimately, while Olise will be near enough impossible to replace in a single player, Sara looks like he'd at least be able to help replace some of the Frenchman's output, and under Glasner, who knows how good he could become?
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