SkySports report that Crystal Palace are on the verge of completing a deal for West Ham United striker Diafra Sakho, for a fee of between £10 million and £12 million.
The Senegalese forward joined West Ham from French club Metz in 2014, and, although he has scored 18 goals for the club, has found first team opportunities limited, and his appearances this season have been mainly off the bench.
Palace are keen to bolster their striking options, with Christian Benteke having scored only one Premier League goal this season, and have also been linked with a move for Fiorentina forward Khouma Babacar.
Sakho came close to leaving East London for French club Rennes in the summer, but the Hammers pulled the plug on the deal at the last minute, preferring to keep him as back-up. Now, however, under new manager David Moyes, the club feels they have enough strength in the forward department, and would prefer to use the money from the sale of Sakho to strengthen their team in other areas, like midfield.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.