Eze transfer: Crystal Palace drop hint on future amid £68m Arsenal chase

Arsenal want to make Crystal Palace star Eberechi Eze their next big-money signing but the Gunners are running out of time should they want to activate a release clause in his contract

Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish is resigned to players leaving the club amid Arsenal’s interest in Eberechi Eze. The Gunners are eyeing the England man as their latest big-money addition of the summer.

Eze has a £68m release clause written into his contract with the Eagles, albeit that is set to expire on August 15, meaning Arsenal only have a limited amount of time left should they want to make a move. Once that expires, Palace could negotiate an even higher price.

But it appears that chairman Parish has given Arsenal encouragement ahead of a potential move, claiming that players leaving the club is just a natural process. Speaking after the Eagles’ Community Shield win vs Liverpool, he said: “Players come and go in football clubs, you know, I mean, it's a life cycle isn't it? Hopefully they're still here. That's what I'd like but we'll see."

Amid Arsenal’s interest in Eze, Gunners icon Ray Parlour has backed the winger to become the North London side’s final signing of the summer. Speaking on talkSPORT, he said: “I think there might be one more signing.

“I don't know how much money they've got left or whether the rules as well they've got to look at, but if there is enough money, Eze would be [a great signing]."

He added: "He’d be [playing] off the left there, maybe, but you've got to have options. You've got to have lots of players who can just come in and come out of the team. And we all know that you've got to have depth.

“A lot of depth if you're playing Champions League football, the FA Cup, so many games. That's why Norgaard would be good for Arsenal, because he can come in certain games, he's got the experience.

“And he knows he's going to be second fiddle, but he can still play a big part for Arsenal in certain areas. So I think Eze would be the icing on the cake.”

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Eze is not the only Crystal Palace star subject to serious interest this summer. Defender Marc Guehi is also being eyed by Liverpool as they aim to sign a new centre-back ahead of next month’s deadline.

Reports suggested that the Reds were leading the race for the England man, with Chelsea having shifted their focus onto alternative targets. Speaking about his future, Parish said: "Yes. I mean, we'd have to [consider bids], of course. For players of that calibre to leave on a free, it's a problem. No doubt about it, unfortunately.

"We had one bid [last summer] but Joachim [Andersen] went [to Fulham ] and we couldn't afford to lose both of them. We then had another bid in January but that was a difficult situation as well, and the player had a point of view on that one. So we just have to see what happens but it needs a new contract or a conclusion of some kind."