Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish, whilst speaking to Palace TV, says that he sees “no reason” why his club couldn’t sign Everton loanee Cenk Tosun on a permanent basis in the summer.
The Eagles signed the 28-year old striker on loan for the remainder of the season, while the deal included a £20million option that will allow the club to sign him on a permanent basis in the summer.
The Turkish international had been deemed surplus to requirements under Carlo Ancelotti, having not made a single appearance under the Italian, with the forward restricted to the bench for three games before leaving the Blues.
Since signing for Palace, the former Besiktas man has scored once in three appearances, and Palace owner Parish has already spoken about how the club could potential keep him in Croydon beyond the current campaign. Talking to Palace TV, Parish said:
We know there is work to do on the squad, but we will do it in a considered manner. Roy felt we needed more firepower, so we took Cenk and we have got an option to buy him.
Obviously if we had bought him for £20million or whatever, maybe that would have been a better PR story.
But he is an excellent player, he is in the building and I think he will be a big help going into the next six months and I see no reason why we couldn’t make that a permanent deal in the summer, if things go well for both parties.
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Should Palace elect to take up their permanent option in Tosun’s loan agreement, Everton would suffer a minor loss, having bought the Turk from Besiktas for £27million in January 2018.
That would be a huge return for Everton, with Tosun’s failure to establish himself at Goodison Park looking like it would lead to them suffering a much larger loss on their investment.
Tosun left Merseyside in search of regular football as he targets a place in Turkey’s squad ahead of this summer’s Euro 2020 tournament, and should he earn his spot back in the team due to good form for the Eagles, there is no reason to suggest that deal wouldn’t be the best case scenario for all parties.
Before the January transfer window, it was revealed that Tosun wanted to remain in England if he was to move from Everton, amid interest from his former club Besiktas, which could mean that a permanent Palace move would appeal to him.
However, Tosun will first have to ensure the Eagles remain in the Premier League, and with Roy Hodgson’s side just six points above the drop zone with 12 games left to play, that is no forgone conclusion just yet.
