It is looking increasingly unlikely that Mamadou Sakho will be extending his stay at Crystal Palace beyond the loan deal that saw him arrive at Selhurst Park in January.
The Frenchman was a standout performer in the second half of the season but won’t return to Liverpool in the summer with Jurgen Klopp looking to offload him in favour of adding a new central defender to his ranks.
Sakho lost his place in the side last year after being part of a doping investigation, which he was later cleared of, before also breaching club rules during Liverpool’s pre-season tour.
He subsequently trained and played for the U23s and now looks certain to depart permanently before the beginning of next season. It may not be Palace he moves to, though, with chairman Steve Parish uncertain as to whether a deal will be possible.
“I think that is going to be a very difficult one for us to do. I think Liverpool want a big number for him,” he told the Liverpool Echo.
“That is a tough one to make happen on a permanent basis. We need to look at the budgets and be realistic.”
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Liverpool seemingly have no intention of lowering their £30m asking price for the former Paris Saint-Germain centre-back, which could well rule Palace out. That said, there appears to be plenty of interest from elsewhere and enough for fans to believe the 27-year-old will certainly be on his way out of the club this summer.