Crystal Palace are said to be targeting another youngster from League One side Ipswich Town, Flynn Downes.
The Eagles have been making some futuristic signings, which could turn out to be an intelligent piece of business in the nearest future due to a possible high sale value.
EADT reports that Crystal Palace have had two bids rejected for Downes. The last one was said to be in the region of £2 million which was deemed too short of the club’s £8million valuation.
Downes’ continuous link to the Premier league side Crystal Palace has seemingly affected his focus on and off the field, which has been evident to his manager.
Lambert confessed that the speculations surrounding Flynn’s possible departure has affected Downes.
“Flynn has trained all week but it’s an unsettling time for him at the moment and he’s only a young lad. I have spoken to him and told him to have a couple of days off. It will give him time to clear his head and then he’ll be back with us again next week.
“He’s a very talented player so I’m not surprised there has been interest in him but the bids we have had are nowhere near the valuation that the owner is looking for and rightly so,” Lambert explained.
The 21-year-old came through the developmental youth ranks at Ipswich, after joining the club at the age of seven and made his debut in 2017, at the age of 18.
He came on as a substitute for Andre Dozzell, who was injured in the first-half stoppage time, in an eventual 1–0 home victory over league rival Birmingham City.
Two years after his senior league debut, Downes made history becoming Ipswich’s youngest ever captain, in a FA Cup second round encounter against Coventry City in December 2019.
Standing at 5ft 8inch, the diminutive midfielder’s strength and awareness on the ball is praised to be second to none in the league division.
Ipswich Town’s General manager of football operations, Lee O’Neill, has confirmed that the club rejected two bids, while one of them has been identified to be from Palace.
He said: “We have received two bids for Flynn over the last week or two but they are nowhere near the club’s valuation,” said O’Neill.
“Marcus (Evans, club owner] rejected them straightaway and he has spoken personally to Flynn to make him aware of the club’s position.
“Every player strives to play at the highest level and Flynn is no different. We fully understand why a move to the Premier League would appeal to him but until the club receives an offer that meets our valuation there is no decision to make.
“We want to keep Flynn here because he is seen as a key part of our plans. We certainly don’t welcome offers for him but we have to be realistic and accept that the good, young players we have here are going to attract interest. That doesn’t mean we have to sell them and the owner has proved that.
“Flynn understands the situation and is just getting on with his football. He’s been here 10 years, come through the academy and is now a first-team regular and, in all that time, he has been fully committed to the club. While he’s here, it will always be that way because that’s the sort of person he is.”
Crystal Palace has already signed some interesting young players in Eberechi Eze (22), Nathan Ferguson (19), Brandon Pierrick (18) and Sam Woods (21) this summer.
Palace seem to be preparing for a greater future, considering their recruitment strategy.
With The Eagles in need of some creativity in their side, Downes has been identified to possess the potential to be decisive in making passes in the final third and also carve out opportunities for his teammates.
Though, Palace’s new signing Eberechi Eze is known to have abundance of creativity but Downes’ addition will add more creative spark and help the team to be more flexible in their attack.
