The Mail claim (Monday, 5:23PM) that Crystal Palace have completed the £10million permanent signing of striker Jean-Philippe Mateta. The Frenchman has spent the last year on loan at Crystal Palace from Mainz.
Signed on an initial 18-month loan deal from the German clubs after 27 goals in 71 games in Germany – Palace swooped to land him on a loan-to-buy deal back in January 2021. There were six months left on that deal.
Now, reports claim that Palace have decided to sign Mateta for a permanent £10million fee. That is, despite Mateta only playing 16 times during the 12 months he has spent at Selhurst Park. He has signed a four-year deal.
It comes after Mateta scored in a 3-0 win over Norwich in December, and laid on an assist against Liverpool in Palace’s last Premier League outing – a 3-1 defeat. Patrick Vieira is said to be a fan of the Frenchman.
Palace sign Mateta: A good move, or an expensive waste of cash?
Mateta clearly has the tools to be a quality Premier League striker. In Germany, he was excellent for Mainz, scoring a goal at a better ratio than one in three. He is yet to reignite that form in England.
But Vieira sees something in Mateta and there have been glimpses of quality. He is beginning to show that more consistently and in this day and age, £10million for a 24-year-old striker is somewhat cheap.
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