Chrislain Matsima: Palace talks stall as club assess alternatives to replace Chelsea-bound Lacroix | OneFootball

Crystal Palace have suffered a setback in their pursuit of Chrislain Matsima, with negotiations with Augsburg over the centre-back currently stalled.

The Standard understands talks could yet resume, but Palace are assessing alternatives as they replace Chelsea-bound Maxence Lacroix, who is expected to complete a £52m move in the coming days.

The shortlist includes 21-year-old Nathan Zeze of Neom SC. He has been on Palace’s radar since 2024, first identified by former sporting director Dougie Freedman while at Nantes. He joined Neom last summer despite interest from Palace, Bournemouth and Liverpool, in a deal worth about £17m.

He is already said to be keen on a return to Europe, and Palace have recently held talks with his representatives over a possible move.

Palace also want more than one defensive addition and are weighing up former Arsenal defender Takehiro Tomiyasu. The Japan international is a free agent after leaving Ajax and was on the bench as a trialist for the Como Cup defeat to Lens on Tuesday. Any Tomiyasu move would be separate to talks for Matsima and Zeze, who are seen as direct Lacroix replacements.

The same separation applies to reported interest in Raphael Le Guen, with personal terms said to be agreed for the 19-year-old defender.

Source: The Standard

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”