Crystal Palace and Leeds United now want to sign Alfie Taylor from Hull City following some impressive displays for the Championship side.
TEAMtalk believe the Eagles and the Whites have been monitoring the 19-year-old as he excels in the youth ranks at the MKM Stadium.
Leicester are also said to be interested in Taylor.
What’s the story?
Well, the teenager could soon be joining a Premier League side if he maintains his level of performance.
Taylor’s outstanding efforts for Hull City‘s Under-18 and Under-23 sides earned him a place on the bench under Liam Rosenior in Championship action, as he made the squad for recent clashes against Blackburn, Middlesbrough and Watford.
TEAMtalk believe Crystal Palace, Leeds and Leicester all view the centre-back as a player of huge potential, someone they can model into a Premier League regular in years to come.
Hull would prefer to keep Taylor, but are bracing themselves for offers ahead of the summer transfer window as Premier League vultures circle.
Crystal Palace hold advantage over Leeds & Leicester
If Crystal Palace wanted to be proactive, they have a golden opportunity to beat Leeds and Leicester to Taylor’s signature now with a verbal agreement, before the transfer window even opens.
The south Londoners are now basically safe from relegation barring a truly unprecedented swing of results, whereas Leeds and Leicester are still right in the thick of it at the bottom of the Premier League.
That doesn’t really help them out in terms of planning ahead and getting some groundwork done on potential deals, as they have no idea what division they’ll be playing in next season.
Contrastingly, Crystal Palace can assure targets that they will be in the Premier League next season, which could give the Eagles an edge over their rivals in the race to sign Taylor.
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