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Football

31st Jul 2018

Max Meyer close to joining Premier League club on free transfer

He let his contract at Schalke run down after falling out with the hierarchy and now looks set to move to the Premier League on a free transfer

Reuben Pinder

His contract at Schalke ended this summer

Crystal Palace are closing in on signing Mex Meyer after holding productive talks with the free agent, according to The Guardian

The midfielder was at Schalke for five years before letting his contract running down this summer, and the 22-year-old is now a free agent. With four Germany caps to his name and 146 Bundesliga appearances, he boasts an impressive CV and would be an excellent signing for Palace is they are able to wrap up the deal.

The Guardian’s report states that Meyer is due to undergo a medical at Palace today. Best in the number 10 role, he would fill a Ruben Loftus-Cheek shaped hole in the Palace squad, but his versatility would also allow him to play in a slightly deeper role, replacing the departed Yohan Cabaye.

Meyer’s time at Schalke came to an end after he fell out with the club hierarchy, who were not willing to meet his wage demands. The fall out was so severe that the club banished their star player from training in April.

Several clubs have been interested, but many have considered his demands to be too excessive, which has allowed Palace to swoop in. He would likely be paid somewhere in the range of £100k per week, just less than Palace’s talisman Wilfried Zaha.

Meyer would become Palace’s second signing of the summer, after goalkeeper Vicente Guaita arrived in July from Getafe, also on a free transfer.

Funds are scarce at Selhurst Park this summer, but securing Meyer would be demonstrative of Roy Hodgson’s savvy approach to the free market.