Crystal Palace Reportedly Cannot Afford Sakho

Mamadou Sakho spent half of last season at Crystal Palace and made a huge impression with his talismanic performances to help Sam Allardyce organise the defence of a team in real danger of relegation. Big Sam left Crystal Palace with yet another search for another manager or head coach to keep the club moving forward. Can football survive without the big man?

Liverpool’s £30 million asking price might be an optimistic valuation, but there's a very good chance of making a profit on the £18 million that was needed to take Sakho from Paris Saint-Germain to Liverpool in 2013. However, the South London club has been reconsidering a move for a player that would be a marquee signing if a deal can be struck.

The reality for Sakho is that he hasn't played a competitive game for Liverpool in over a year, a fact that should end any lingering hopes of a recall to Jürgen Klopp’s inner circle—the first-team squad where Ragnar Klavan, Lucas Leiva, and Dejan Lovren are deemed as sufficient support options for Joël Matip.

The compromise that Palace were willing to find appears to be no longer possible, but could this be a ruse to force Liverpool’s stance to soften. The 27-year-old could still join Christian Benteke at Selhurst Park and would be an approriate gift for any manager or head coach that will be appointed in the near future.

Maybe it's part of the summer transfer window dance, but at this stage, there is no harm in waiting to see what happens before passing judgement on Liverpool’s methods. If Sakho wants to remain in the Premier League, though, he may need to look elsewhere.