Ligue 1 ace Cheick Doucoure has been left out of the Mali squad as he reportedly closes in on a move to Premier League outfit Crystal Palace, as reported by Les Aigles du Mali’s Twitter account.
Three words. That was all it took for Doucoure to send the rumour mill into a dizzying spin on the other side of the Channel. Three simple words; ‘The last dance’.
That rather emotive caption, coupled with a photo showing Doucoure and his Lens team-mates, certainly felt like a farewell.
Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Monaco was Lens’ final game of the 2021/22 campaign, after all, and it seems highly unlikely that Doucoure will be back at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis the next time Lens are taking to the field.
According to The Sun, it is only a matter of time before the 22-year-old powerhouse is posing for photos, arm in arm with Patrick Vieira at Crystal Palace. The Eagles boss is reportedly ‘crazy’ about Doucoure, who missed out on a move to Tottenham Hotspur last summer and would add an injection of youth and exuberance to an ageing Selhurst Park engine room.
Crystal Palace want Lens’ Cheick Doucoure
Doucoure was conspicuous by his absence as Mali announced their squad for June’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. And it is believed that the midfielder was been left at home in order to speed up his departure from a Lens side who finished seventh in Ligue 1, ahead of Europa League quarter-finalists Lyon and 2021 Ligue 1 champions Lille.
“Cheick Doucoure is in the process of being transferred, which is the reason for his absence from the matches against Congo and South Sudan,” Les Aigles du Mali explain.
“The Malian should probably leave RC Lens in the days or weeks to come.”
Doucoure’s arrival would ease Crystal Palace’s reliance on the 30-something duo James McArthur and Cheikhou Kouyate, both of whom are out of contract.
Luka Milivojevic, meanwhile, is in line for a return to Olympiakos.
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“Cheick knows how to do everything on the pitch,” says Doucoure’s Lens team-mate and captain Seko Fofana. “He works in the shadows and, for me, he is very important.
“He is incredibly complete. He’s one of the best players I’ve played with. He knows how to shoot from a distance, how to pass, break the lines, dribble, defend.”
A couple of weeks ago, Doucoure ‘liked‘ a comment from a supposed Crystal Palace supporter welcoming him to Selhurst Park.
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