Crystal Palace set to sign Honest Ahanor on loan before Chelsea move | OneFootball

Crystal Palace are set to sign defender Honest Ahanor on loan from Atalanta for this season, with a permanent switch to Chelsea next summer.

The Athletic reported on Thursday that Chelsea had agreed a £40 million (€46m) deal with personal terms. That agreement stands as Palace take him directly from Atalanta.

The 18-year-old joined Atalanta last summer from Genoa, for whom he made six appearances, and then featured 35 times, including nine in the Champions League, last season.

He has two Italy caps from June, against Luxembourg and Greece, appearing once as a substitute and once from the start.

Chelsea signed centre-back Maxence Lacroix from Palace this summer for £52 million, leaving the south London club short in defence. A loan with obligation for Joel Ordonez from Club Brugge is in serious doubt after medical concerns.

Ahanor adds depth at centre-back. Palace had been excited by Ordonez, but that move now looks unlikely, and while Ahanor is young, he already has Champions League and a full Serie A season behind him.

With Disasi in, Palace have some leadership at the back, though Pierre Sage still wants a physical, technically capable centre-midfielder and must work within UEFA’s Squad Cost Ratio. Disasi and Ahanor are short-term fixes, with a permanent Lacroix replacement to find and potentially another defender.

Source: NY Times

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