Hodgson wowed by former Liverpool defender, as Palace close in on deal

Crystal Palace are reportedly closing in on the signing of former Liverpool defender Nathaniel Clyne, who has been training with the South London club.

Clyne left Anfield earlier this year after his contract with the Reds expired. However he had not featured for some time before then, after suffering a serious knee injury last summer.

As such, the free agent recently began working with Palace, regaining his fitness in the hope of securing a new move.

According to The Athletic, his new club could well be the Eagles, who he has thoroughly impressed recently.

After moving back down south in September, he featured in Palace’s Under-23 clash with Aston Villa at the start of October.

Palace registered Clyne as a trialist for that match, which was his first outing since May 2019. He featured for 45 minutes and showed attacking promise throughout his stint.

He played a one-two with midfielder Brandon Pierrick and had a strong shot blocked by Villa’s goalkeeper.

Crucially, though, his performance reportedly impressed Roy Hodgson. As such, Palace are now on the verge of taking the 29-year-old on a three-month deal, with Hodgson keen to add him to his ranks.

The short-term deal will mean Clyne will provide cover for Joel Ward. Palace recently brought in Nathan Ferguson from West Brom but he is continuing to recover from knee surgery.


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Clyne vying for Premier League return

As such, Clyne will likely step in and put himself on standby for a potential Premier League return.

The former England international began his career at Palace, playing 137 times for the club before moving to Southampton in 2012.

From there, he pressed on and caught admiring glances from Liverpool, who signed him in the summer of 2015.

Clyne was a key figure in the early stages of Jurgen Klopp’s Anfield reign before Trent Alexander-Arnold’s emergence.

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