Report: De Boer wants Sakho but have Liverpool overpriced him at £30m?

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Mamadou Sakho was a bright spark in the centre of Crystal Palace’s defence but they may not be able to afford him given Liverpool’s asking price.

Crystal Palace fans may be jubilant about securing the services of Frank de Boer, but they are likely to be disappointed to see Mamadou Sakho return to Liverpool for pre-season training. While the Guardian explained, Liverpool will let Sakho leave this summer but will seek at least £30 million for the France international.

The price would seem a tad steep seeing that the central-defender did not play a minute for Liverpool last season, having played 22 games in the Premier League the season before last.

Crystal Palace’s Mamadou Sakho in action

SkySports notes that Parish was confident of doing a deal earlier in the month, when he spoke on Holmesdale Radio. “The money needs to work for us and for Liverpool and I’m sure there will be a negotiation on that and, if we can make it work, of course we’d like to,” he said.

Liverpool will aim for as much as they can get as the money will be funds they might be able to use to strengthen their Premier League and Champions League ambitions, but they also risk not getting a sale if they hold out for too much.

The importance of Sakho for Crystal Palace is evident by his contribution to the team, helping the team to four clean sheets in the eight games he has played for them in 2017, plus 47 clearances of which one was off the line.

The player himself just has to wait. His perspective was made clearly in an interview with the Guardian. “If I wear the Liverpool shirt again I will gladly. I have three more years of contact there. But if I have to stay at Palace, I would do that gladly too,” he said.

Crystal Palace Press Conference for the appointment of Frank de Boer as the club’s new manager

If Frank de Boer and Steve Parish really want to please the fans they will find a way to make the deal. But they must put the club first before the player, which could mean they pull back from this one.

Frank de Boer could decide to look for cheaper alternatives, such as Ajax defender Joel Veltman, a player the Dutchman knows well, reports the Daily Mirror.