“Wish him the best”: 27-year-old basically confirms his teammate has joined Crystal Palace

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Seko Fofana has been speaking to L’Equipe about his teammate Cheick Doucoure, who has seemingly joined Crystal Palace.

What’s the story?

Well, the south Londoners agreed a £22m deal for the Mali international a few weeks ago now, with Sky Sports adding that he was scheduled to undergo a medical last Thursday.

However, things have been somewhat delayed due to work permit regulations, although by the sounds of Fofana’s comments, the deal is expected to be finalised soon.

Speaking to L’Equipe, the 27-year-old said: “You have to be honest, he’s irreplaceable. We’ll have to move on but it’s weird not to be next to Cheick. I only wish him the best for the future.

“He was in my shadow a lot, maybe because I was scoring goals, but he brought a lot to the club. He left through the front door. I have a lot of respect for him, I consider him to be one of the best players I’ve ever played with.”

Now, that should leave the Crystal Palace fans very excited indeed.

Clearly, Doucoure is – or was, rather – a respected member of the squad at RC Lens, and it speaks volumes about his character that teammates such as Fofana think so highly of him.

In his final season for RC Lens, the 22-year-old made 36 appearances in all competitions, scoring one goal while also providing four assists.

Now, Patrick Vieira and the likes of Wilfried Zaha will benefit from Doucoure’s presence at the base of midfield, with his work permit issues expected to be resolved soon.

Crystal Palace need Cheick Doucoure

After seeing a deal for Flynn Downes quickly hijacked by West Ham, Vieira needs Doucoure through the door at Selhurst Park to get Crystal Palace’s summer back on track.

It began well with shrewd deals for Sam Johnstone and Malcolm Ebiowei on free transfers, although optimism is beginning to dwindle as the deal for Doucoure stalls, and Roma make contact to sign Wilfried Zaha.

Of course, it is far from a disaster, although we feel announcing the signing of Doucoure would do a lot to lift the mood in SE25, and would also provide Vieira with a much-needed presence in midfield.

The Eagles have already lost Conor Gallagher and Cheikhou Kouyate – both of whom were key players last season – so another face in the midfield department is desperately needed.

Keep an eye on this situation, as Doucoure could be announced any day now.