Crystal Palace one of many clubs that are interested in signing £120k-a-week PL star

The latest reports suggest that Donny van de Beek is attracting a lot of interest this summer and one of the interested clubs is Crystal Palace.

 

According to 90min, many clubs across England and Europe are interested in making a move for the Dutchman. These clubs include Inter and AC Milan, as well as Roma, Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, Celtic and Sevilla.

Some of the teams in Europe have made enquiries, whilst the Eagles are currently monitoring van de Beek. They are apparently assessing his situation to identify if there is a possibility that he could join this summer.

With so many clubs interested, it is no doubt going to be a very tough battle for the Eagles to win. A lot of the clubs who want to sign him are playing in European competitions.

Crystal Palace interested in van de Beek

The Eagles have already allowed central midfielders James McArthur and Luka Milivojevic to leave the club on a free transfer this summer.

Meanwhile, fellow midfielder Albert Sambi Lokonga has headed back to Arsenal now that his loan has expired at Crystal Palac

Due to this, the club definitely need to strengthen in the midfield. They have already done so by signing Jefferson Lerma but another central midfielder would be good business.

The issue with van de Beek is that he has struggled to thrive in the Premier League at Manchester United. He was a great player with Ajax, but perhaps the Premier League is too tough for him

The 26 year-old only featured seven times in the Premier League last season. This, combined with the fact that he is on £120k-a-week makes the signing feel like a big risk for a club like Palace who try to not massively overspend.

Due to this, it definitely seems like it would be a better idea to look at other options elsewhere or look towards their top academy.

They have midfielders like David Ozoh, who Patrick Vieira gave a Premier League debut too. It is most definitely worth giving these academy products who have big potential a go.

Crystal Palace take on Barnet on Tuesday 11th July (19:30 BST) – the only way to catch all the action is by tuning in LIVE on Palace TV+. Check out how to subscribe by clicking HERE.

In 1998, Crystal Palace were reeling from relegation, having finished bottom of the Premier League in a season characterised by chaos. Barnet, meanwhile, were struggling for promotion from the fourth tier, soon to fall away from the Football League.

Just a few hundred miles away across the English channel, on football’s biggest stage, a very different story was unfolding. A young midfielder would light up the World Cup, and become a hero with his last-minute winner against Yugoslavia.

Having emerged as one of the brightest talents at the Ajax Academy – winning the Champions League in 1995 – he had moved to Juventus via AC Milan and sat at the top level of European football.

But the World Cup was something of a redemption mission. Having been exiled from the international squad during Euro 96 for a catastrophic fall-out with manager Guus Hiddink, he had been reintroduced for a tournament the Netherlands were among the favourites to win.

From Edwin van der Sar to Jaap Stam, Clarence Seedorf to Patrick Kluivert, Dennis Bergkamp to Marc Overmars, the Dutch had talent all over the pitch. But in the engine room they needed ‘The Pitbull’ back, and he duly delivered.

“I was just doing my job,” came Davids’ understated post-match reaction to his last-minute winner.

After leaving Juventus, Davids played for Inter Milan and Barcelona before heading to England with Tottenham Hotspur. Then, in 2010, a shock epilogue to a wonderful career.

“Let’s just have fun,” said the then 37-year-old as he was presented as a Crystal Palace player. “I’ll give it my all and see where it leads to. I can play left-back, I can play in midfield or on the left or right wings.

“I’ll play where the team needs me. It is an exciting time for the football club, and it is an exciting time for me. I just want to enjoy football and show the best I can do.”

 

Davids’ impact on the younger players was instant. They had a bona fide legend of the game alongside them in the dressing room. Former Palace man Ibra Sekajja remembers it clearly.

“When Edgar came to Palace we got on really well. He saw me doing these tricks and he came over to me and said: ‘I see you got tricks – show me something.’

“We went one-on-one and I realised that he has a lot more tricks in his arsenal! These sessions used to happen all the time after training and that’s how we got to know each other.”

Davids played just seven times for Palace before announcing his departure in November, declaring his short stint to be “one of the greatest experiences of my life”. For a man that used to share a midfield with Zinedine Zidane, that is some praise.

After two years outside the professional game, managing Sunday league side Brixton United and playing street football, he accepted an offer to become player-manager at Barnet. On his debut he captained the side to a 4-0 win over Northampton Town, winning Man of the Match in the process.

His bond with the fans grew: one story saw him send the Barnet team coach to pick up supporters stranded at a service station after a defeat at Accrington Stanley.

Relegation increased tensions, however, and when Davids was sent off in three of the first eight league games he played in the 2013/14 season it began to feel like the end was nigh. He resigned in January 2014, retiring from the professional game for good.

Among his 74 international caps, six league titles, Champions League and domestic cup winners medals, in Crystal Palace and Barnet Davids can always look back on a dramatic three-year final chapter to a career that had it all