Crystal Palace had another strong second half of the season under manager Roy Hodgson, finishing 12th in the league, just 3 points shy of a top 10 position. Hodgson’s side will certainly strengthen and may generate a lot of money from player sales, with the likes of Wilfried Zaha, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Patrick van Aanholt linked with big money moves away from Selhurst Park and we expect at least one of them to make an exit.
Another player has been added to that list as reports have now emerged that Christian Benteke is set to leave the London club and join Belgian compatriot Marouane Fellaini at Shandong Luneng Taishan in China. The deal is set to see Benteke be sold for a price of £15 million.
The former Liverpool forward had a woeful season, finishing the season with just 1 goal in 19 appearances in all competitions, upstaged by Wilfried Zaha and even Michy Batshuayi, who was on loan from Chelsea.
With Benteke set to leave Crystal Palace, who could replace him in the team? Let’s look at 3 strikers Hodgson should go after:
Salomón Rondón
Salomón Rondón is being pursued by several clubs after his terrific season with Newcastle United where he was named Player of the Year. The striker, who was on loan from West Bromwich Albion, scored 12 goals in all competitions for the Magpies.
Rondon is an experienced Premier League striker and is certain to bring goals to any team. He is available for £16.5 million but Palace will face stiff competition from Wolves, West Ham United and Newcastle United, who are all interested in signing him.
Aleksandar Mitrović
In what was a disastrous return to the Premier League for Fulham, striker Aleksandar Mitrović was the only shining light for the club. Fulham finished way below the pack, registering just 7 wins in the entire season and losing 26 games. Their Achilles heel was the defence as they conceded 81 goals – the most in this Premier League, while their attack didn’t fare much better, scoring just 34 goals. 11 of those goals came from Mitrovic, who had a good season, on the personal front.
Mitrovic was signed by Fulham from Newcastle United for £22 million, and they would most likely want to recoup the fee they invested in him. Everton and West Ham United are rumoured to be interested in signing him.
Daniel Sturridge
This may be a left-field option, but it’s a gamble worth taking. Daniel Sturridge is out of contract at Liverpool in the summer, and it is unlikely that the Merseyside club will offer him a new one. He has been a bit-part player for the Premier League runner-ups, making just 7 starts in all competitions in the season and a few appearances off the bench. The English forward scored thrice and assisted twice in the season, but if his past goal-scoring exploits are anything to go by, he could be a decent signing for Roy Hodgson if he can keep himself injury-free.
Sturridge is a good passer and his link-up play is decent, while also very good inside the box, which could tempt Hodgson to sign him.
