The rising international star who could spark Crystal Palace and Fulham transfer bidding war
Crystal Palace and Fulham have been connected with a transfer bid for an defender who’s found some incredibly impressive form - so who will sign him?
The January transfer window is still a couple of months away, but some of the Premier League’s struggling sides are already planning the moves that could end up being the difference between survival and relegation – including Crystal Palace and Fulham.
Both teams have underperformed under new management and both look likely to find themselves embroiled in a battle to beat the drop unless they can turn things around in a suitably prompt fashion. A deal or two in January could be a part of that turnaround, and now fresh reports suggest that they could clash in their efforts to sign a rising star of African football.
Crystal Palace and Fulham interested in Chibuike Nwaiwu – reports
According to a report from Sport Witness, who cite both Turkish media sources and Africa Foot, both teams are casting an eye over Nigerian centre-back Chibuike Nwaiwu, who has emerged as one of the best defenders in the Turkish Super Lig since moving to Trabzonspor in January.
The 23-year-old has been the star performer in the stingiest defence in the Turkish league – Trabzonspor have conceded just eight goals in their first 10 fixtures – and is starting to attract inevitable attention, with Fulham and Crystal Palace both supposedly keen to secure his services.
It’s easy to see the appeal. Nwaiwu ticks a lot of boxes: At 6’4” he cuts an imposing physical figure and is strong both on the ground and in the air, but he’s also technically adept with an impressive passing range and the positional sense to put himself in the right place at the right time with regularity.
His outstanding all-round game and lack of evident weaknesses encouraged Trabzonspor to spend €5.5m (£4.6m) when they signed him from Austrian outfit Wolfsberger back in January and could now lead to a much more expensive move in the near future.
Nwaiwu, now a full Nigeria international with three caps to his name, is under contract until 2030 and said to be happy to see out the season with his current club, but a sense of urgency could compel sides like Fulham and Palace to try and force the issue over the winter – and it’s been reported that Fulham already came close to signing the centre-back over the summer.
Will Palace or Fulham sign the defender of their dreams this January?
According to Sport Witness’ report, Trabzonspor would only let Nwaiwu leave for an “astronomical price” and they certainly have a strong negotiating position given the lengthy of his contract – but Premier League money can talk at quite some volume.
There doesn’t seem to be an established asking price for his services, although some reports over the summer suggested that he could be worth as much as £30m. That may be an exaggeration, but he will certainly be worth a lot more than he cost his current side just a few months ago.
The price point was supposedly the stumbling block in negotiations between Fulham and Nwaiwu over the summer. The Cottagers apparently agreed personal terms with the defender but couldn’t come to an agreement with his club and the move collapsed. The combination of his outstanding form at the start of the new season and Fulham’s growing worries about their safety could encourage them to up their bid in January.
Crystal Palace’s interest is reportedly a more recent development, but they have the worse defensive record in the Premier League through nine games, having conceded 21 goals, and have struggled to replace Marc Guéhi and Maxence Lacroix. With Chadi Riad once again missing through long-term injury as well, the signing of a new centre-half seems very likely, and the links to Nwaiwu entirely realistic as a result.
Just because the pair might be keen doesn’t mean that they’ll get their wish, however. If reports suggest that neither Nwaiwu nor his employers are in a hurry to cash in on his success in Turkey prove to be accurate, then a January deal may simply be too expensive to consider.
But his performances - and the stellar statistical markers which back up the impression that he’s developing into a truly first-rate defender – suggest that someone will be ready to stump up a very large fee indeed in the near future. Perhaps Palace or Fulham will be sufficiently desperate to take an especially substantial gamble over the winter. A deal looks relatively unlikely at this stage, but perhaps the lure of Premier League football will be enough to twist a very talented player’s arm.