Crystal Palace are set to continue their EFL-based recruitment this summer and are tracking Derby County's Malcolm Ebiowei according to The Sun.

The 18-year-old has burst onto the scene at Pride Park in the second half of the season, and is out of contract in the summer.

The Eagles signed Eberechi Eze in the summer of 2020, Michael Olise in that of 2021 and could swoop for Ebiowei this time around to continue that trend.

Is it a good potential move?

Certainly, the 18-year-old has previously been in the youth setups of Arsenal and Rangers, so the move to Palace would not be daunting at all.

Having dealt with the pressure and challenging environment at Derby this season, Ebiowei has earned some very valuable experience that should aid his adaptability to whatever lies ahead.

Palace feels like a smart move at this stage, with a strong chance that he could push for regular first team minutes in the coming years.

Would he start?

It is hard to see Ebiowei receiving more than five league starts for Palace next season due to the players already in his position.

The 18-year-old would be competing with Wilfried Zaha, Odsonne Edouard, Jordan Ayew, Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise, not many players in the Championship would back themselves to come through that.

However, there would be opportunities in the cup or on loan, which could be good for his development with so much time left in his career.

 

 

What does he offer?

14 senior Championship appearances is not enough to be making sweeping judgements about Ebiowei, but for the Rams in the last few months he has been a terrific outlet.

Dribbling is his key strength at the moment, and decision making in the final third could definitely be improved, and in the future Ebiowei could prove to be a long term replacement for Ayew or even Wilfried Zaha.

At 18, the sky is the limit at the moment and he certainly looks like a Premier League player in the making, especially when taking on defenders in wide areas.