Exclusive: Crysyal Palace Ready to Battle Fulham For Raheem Sterling's Prized Signature

Crystal Palace are ready to battle Fulham for Raheem Sterling’s signature if Chelsea fail to engineer a move to Saudi Arabia for the former Manchester City and Liverpool star.

As SportsBoom exclusively revealed earlier this month, Stamford Bridge’s hierarchy hope their connections in the Kingdom will enable them to offload the unwanted attacker to one of its upwardly mobile clubs before the SPL’s transfer window closes on Tuesday.

Dispatching Sterling to the Middle East, where the likes of Joao Felix, N’golo Kante and Kalidou Koulibaly have all travelled in recent seasons, would suit the Blues given that any agreement there is likely to be permanent. 

Despite being told he has no future in west London and seemingly being forced to train away from his fellow senior professionals, Sterling is still thought to be the best-paid player in Enzo Maresca’s earning an estimated £325,000 a week. 

Given the need to comply with both the Premier League and UEFA’s financial regulations, that is a significant drain on the resources of even a side as wealthy as Chelsea.

However, given they acknowledge Sterling has continued to fulfil his contractual obligations, Maresca’s employers will also consider a loan switch should the 30-year-old refuse to uproot and head halfway around the world.

DEAL COLLAPSE

Fulham were close to brokering a temporary deal for Sterling last month, only for the proposed arrangement to collapse. Capped 82 times by England, Sterling’s preference is to remain in the capital. 

That has prompted Palace to investigate the possibility of entering the race for Sterling’s services should, as those closest to him suggest, he elects to ignore any overtures from Saudi.

Palace would benefit from reinforcements after selling Eberechi Eze to Arsenal. Although he operated on the other side of the pitch to Sterling, both are versatile performers capable of operating in multiple positions. 

With Marc Guehi also set to depart when his contract expires, Palace would also have the money to cover a sizeable portion of Sterling’s salary, which runs to nearly £18m per annum.

However, the Blues concede that, unless Sterling is sold, they will have to provide a significant subsidy.