Crystal Palace are keen on a summer move for defender Joachim Andersen, who is on loan at Fulham from Lyon.
Joachim Andersen, 24, arrived at Craven Cottage on a season-long loan from Ligue 1 club Lyon in summer and has been one of the rare bright sparks in an otherwise disappointing campaign for Fulham. The Denmark international has made 27 Premier League appearances for the west Londoners, scoring a goal and captaining Scott Parker’s side on a number of occasions.
The 24-year-old centre-back played a crucial role in helping Fulham earn a point against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday. The Cottagers are expected to try and make Andersen’s loan move permanent should they retain their top-flight status. The Dane’s performances haven’t gone unnoticed in the Premier League, with Manchester United, Tottenham, Leicester City and Chelsea all interested in securing his signature at the end of the season.
Meanwhile, Crystal Palace are yet to sort out the future of their manager Roy Hodgson, whose current contract is due to expire at the end of the campaign. Roy Hodgson, 73, the oldest serving manager in the Premier League, has managed to give the club much-needed stability since arriving in 2017. It remains to be seen whether or not the veteran English manager commits himself to the south London club for a year or two or his successful tenure at Selhurst Park draws to a close this summer.
Crystal Palace need reinforcements at the back
Crystal Palace have been leaking goals left, right and centre this season. They have conceded 52 goals in 31 games—the fourth-worst defensive record in the division as things stand. This should be a big worry for Hodgson as his team have suffered from a lack of consistent performances from the defenders.
Gary Cahill and Scott Dann, both aged 35 and 34 respectively, are no spring chicken and are waiting to see if they’ll be offered new deals. Mamadou Sakho and James Tomkins have spent the majority of the last few seasons at Selhurst Park on the treatment table, while Martin Kelly will become a free agent at the end of the campaign.
Central defence is one area where reinforcements are an immediate necessity. The Eagles will need to start gradually moving away from their ageing centre-backs sooner rather than later. To that end, it is easy to see why Palace completing a swoop for Joachim Andersen in the summer would freshen up their backline options with some much-needed quality.
Joachim Andersen would be a good fit at Selhurst Park
Andersen has performed admirably well at the heart of Fulham’s defence that has seen him attract interest from a host of Premier League clubs. He is a hardworking and reliable defender who is solid in the air as well, making him an asset at both ends of the pitch. The Eagles could really do with a player like him in their squad as the Dane will add quality and depth to their defensive ranks.
At 24, Andersen is only going to get better with time and his experience at this level means that he could play a big role in steadying Palace’s defence next season. Having said that, the south Londoners should line up the on-loan Fulham star as one of their top targets this summer, given that he looks like a quality defender with top potential.
I am Rohan Sengupta from one of the busiest cities in India, Mumbai. A Journalism graduate with a keen interest in sports, football is something I simply cannot live without and writing, discussing and analyzing the game is what I do 24*7.
