It was an unbelievable end to the Premier League season for Crystal Palace this year, with new boss Oliver Glasner winning seven of their last 14 games, drawing four and losing just three, while also picking up significant scalps against Manchester United and Liverpool.
The Austrian has unleashed the likes of Eberechi Eze, Michael Olise, and Jean Phillippe Mateta onto an unsuspecting league, and had he been in the dugout from the first game, there is no telling where he could've taken them.
That said, while the Eagles' attackers have looked rejuvenated under the tutelage of the former Frankfurt boss, Odsonne Edouard has remained a peripheral figure, and based on recent reports, he could soon be replaced.
Crystal Palace transfer news
According to a recent report from Caught Offside, Crystal Palace are among several top-flight clubs interested in signing Atlético Madrid's exciting striker Samu Omorodion this summer.
The report has revealed that following his impressive season on loan with Deportivo Alaves, the 20-year-old has caught the attention of Chelsea, West Ham United, Napoli, and Roma alongside the South Londoners, and while Atlético would like to keep hold of him, they would listen to offers in the region of €60m, which converts to around £51m.
The interest from so many other sides would certainly complicate any deal, but Palace's ability to offer more game time than a side like Chelsea would surely give them an advantage when it comes to such a young player, especially with a progressive manager like Glasner at the helm.
It would be challenging and expensive to complete the transfer, but given his impressive showing this season, it might just be worth it.
How Omorodion compares to Edouard
Now, if Palace were able to get ahead of the competition and convince Omorodion that Selhurst Park was the best place for him to be going forward, then his role in the team would likely be as the second-choice striker, as under Glasner, Mateta has exploded into life and looked every bit a top-flight striker.
Yet, with the multitude of cup games and the demanding Premier League season, the Spanish forward would still likely see significant game time, putting him in direct competition with Edouard.
The former Celtic ace started the season as Roy Hodgson's first-choice striker, but as the campaign progressed, he became less and less critical to the team's overall ambitions, and unfortunately for him, his return of just eight goals in 33 games is less impressive than his potential competition's haul of nine goals and one assist in 36 games.
Appearances
36
33
Goals
9
8
Assists
1
0
Goal Involvements per Match
0.27
0.24
Okay, so the 20-year-old comes out ahead of the 26-year-old for pure output, but who comes out ahead when comparing their underlying numbers?
Well, it's more bad news for the Frenchman, as while he produces more progressive passes and carries per 90, he comes out second best for non-penalty expected goals and assists, shots, shots on target, passing accuracy, goal-creating actions, and aerial duels won, also all per 90.
Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists
0.58
0.43
Non-Penalty Goals
0.41
0.40
Assists
0.05
0.00
Progressive Passes
0.81
2.08
Progressive Carries
1.35
1.91
Shots
3.02
2.95
Shots on Target
1.17
1.10
Passing Accuracy
71.8%
71.1%
Goal-Creating Actions
0.14
0.12
Aerial Duels Won
2.75
1.73
Now, there is certainly an argument that at just 20, the Melilla-born forward would likely be far rawer in the league next year. Still, the flip side is that Glasner would have a young "monster in the making", as described by talent scout Jacek Kulig, to step up and replace Mateta if he were to move on in the coming seasons.
Ultimately, while Edouard would likely still be a fine backup striker for the Eagles next season, the fact that Omorodion is already outperforming him and could get so much better is reason enough for Steve Parish and Co to go big this summer and bring him to South London.
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