Rarely does a day go by without Wilfried Zaha facing questions about his future at Crystal Palace but that should be the least of their concerns at the moment.

What's the story?

According to The Sun (1 November, page 59), several Premier League sides are interested in signing Palace defender Scott Dann when the winter transfer window opens in a few months' time.

It's claimed that the unnamed clubs are closely monitoring the situation as they are keen to make a cut-price move for the centre-back due to his contract expiring in the summer.

But Palace chief Steve Parish must reward the ever-reliable veteran with a new deal - or face serious consequences.

Shrewd signing!

The Eagles bought Dann, 33, from Blackburn Rovers for £1.64m on transfer deadline day all the way back in 2014. Since then, it's fair to say that the £2.5m-rated defensive stalwart has turned out to be a shrewd signing, as he has made over 150 appearances for Palace, scoring 15 goals and supplying 7 assists in all competitions.

Hodgson will hardly need to be reminded of the fact that he has had to cope with a mounting injury crisis, as Gary Cahill, Mamadou Sakho and James Tomkins have wrestled with recurring problems over the past year or so.

Dann has cemented his place in the starting line-up and become an important part of the squad that has cemented their place in the Premier League.

Once hailed as a "terrific" true professional by former Palace manager Alan Pardew, the Liverpudlian has played three top flight games this season so far, averaging a staggering 5 clearances per game, via WhoScored. By comparison, even Cahill has only managed 4 clearances per game, as per WhoScored.

As one of the most senior players in the squad, the former captain is an influential figure who is a vocal presence in the dressing room. When you consider the statistics as well, these kind of variables would be very hard to find in any potential replacement in the future. It wouldn't make much sense to leave themselves exposed in an area with such a shortage of talent and competition.

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