According to claims from Turkish outlet Fotospor, Crystal Palace defender Mamadou Sakho is the subject of interest from Besiktas, who are keen to add to their defensive options in January.
The report adds that the Turkish giants are keen to bring in a new centre-back in January, with the club officials looking forward to entering into negotiations with Crystal Palace over a potential loan move for the 29-year-old Frenchman.
Sakho played against Aston Villa, Tottenham and Wolves in the Premier League earlier in the season but he is currently nursing an injury on the sidelines after making just 3 appearances for the Eagles this term. That, however, hasn’t stopped Besiktas from pursuing a keen interest in his services.
The 29-year-old, who clocked over 200 appearances for Paris Saint-Germain before coming through the door at Liverpool in the summer of 2013, struggled to establish himself as a regular starter at Anfield over the course of his stint at Merseyside before initially joining Palace on loan in January 2017.
A series of promising displays in the latter half of the 2017-18 season prompted the Eagles to dish out as much as £26million to acquire his services permanently but Sakho hasn’t really been able to live up to his price tag at Selhurst Park.
The 29-cap French international has earned a negative reputation in South London as an impetuous defender with a patchy injury record, making only 58 appearances in all competitions, although Roy Hodgson has continued to show a lot of trust in his abilities.
However, with Besiktas showing interest and Sakho having just more than 18 months left to run on his current deal until 2021, it won’t be a bad idea for Palace to consider altering their stance on the defender’s future.
To put things into perspective, the Eagles should be open to the prospect of parting ways with Mamadou Sakho in the near future given that he has struggled to make a big impact over the course of his stay at Selhurst Park.
Palace would have thought that they had landed themselves a top-quality centre-back in prime when they splashed such a massive amount a couple of years back but Sakho just hasn’t been consistent enough.
Apart from his propensity for letting the team down with lapses in concentration, the 29-year-old has hardly ever been a regular presence for Palace at the back due to his repeated struggles with injuries.
That coupled with the fact that other central defenders Scott Dann, Gary Cahill and James Tomkins are all above the age of 30, the chance to cash in on Sakho should appeal to the Eagles.
Besiktas might only be looking for a temporary move but the Eagles should ideally consider negotiating a loan deal with an option/obligation to buy, which would enable them to recoup a fraction of the money that they had spent on him a couple of years back.
Sakho is at a stage in his career where his powers are going to start declining very soon, and offloading him would allow the club to reinvest those funds in some young and developing talents.
Furthermore, cashing in on Sakho might as well facilitate a move for a new striker or a creative midfielder in the upcoming transfer windows given that a lack of creativity has been one of the key drawbacks for the club in the Premier League over the past twelve months.
To that end, Palace are going to have to cut their losses on the 29-year-old somewhere down the line in the near future and they shouldn’t hesitate to grab the opportunity to offload him in January if Besiktas do choose to go ahead with their interest in the centre-back’s services.
Of course, they would need to bring in a replacement if they allow him to leave but that would make a lot more sense than keeping the Frenchman on the books for the rest of his contract.
Having been in the Premier League for more than five seasons now, it is high time for the Eagles to move away from mediocrity and start aiming for greater heights. Getting rid of Sakho might well be a step in the right direction for that matter.
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