Olympiakos could miss out on Luka Milivojevic with Crystal Palace’s Premier League veteran too expensive for the Greek giants due to his £65,000-a-week wages, according to SportTime.
On the final day of the Turkish transfer window last week, Galatasaray succeeded in adding Juan Mata, Mauro Icardi, Milot Rashica and former Barcelona winger Yusuf Demir to the likes of Dries Mertens, Leo Dubois and Lucas Torreira.
Now, Olympiakos are hoping to make a similar splash before their own transfer deadline. James Rodriguez, he of Real Madrid and Colombia fame, is joining on a free transfer; reuniting with former Los Blancos team-mate Marcelo.
Tuttomercatoweb say there is a chance Milivojevic could also be heading back to familiar surroundings before the Greek window closes on Thursday. But there are a couple of obstacles that must first be overcome before Olympiakos can parade a man who won two Super League titles before joining Crystal Palace for £13 million nearly five years ago.
Former fans’ favourites Patijm Kasami and Omar Elabdellaoui could also return, potentially alongside PSG’s bench-warming shot-stopper Keylor Navas.
Will Luka Milivojevic leave Crystal Palace and return to Olympiakos?
Milivojevic’s £65,000-a-week wages, for instance. What’s more, the 31-year-old’s family are reportedly content in London, and would prefer to stay in the English capital for the time being. There remains an open line of dialogue between Olympiakos and Milivojevic. But, for now, it seems unlikely that he’ll be going anywhere.
Milivojevic has not started any of Crystal Palace’s six Premier League games so far this term. He has, however, come off the bench on four occasions. Clearly, Patrick Vieira still views the Serbia international as a key part of his plans; utilising Milivojevic’s vast experience whenever Palace are looking to see out a result.
August’s 1-1 draw away at Liverpool, for instance.
“Youth needs to be surrounded by experience,” Vieira explains. “And what is important is to have experienced players around.
“It’s massively important. Those young players need to have positive role models to understand how you prepare yourself for the game. At this football club, we have some really good examples.”
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