Dougie Freedman could be set to add another young, hungry talent to the Crystal Palace squad…

What’s the word?

According to Tom Barclay, Watford winger Ismaila Sarr would be a wonderful signing should Patrick Vieira manage to tempt him to Selhurst Park, with the Eagles having expressed an interest in the player.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT about the 24-year-old, The Sun journalist claimed: “He’d be a fantastic signing for Palace.

“Obviously, Michael Olise has just come back from injury, but when he’s not playing, Jordan Ayew is an underrated player and a very dependable player, but I think Ismaila Sarr is a next level player.

“The idea of him and Zaha and Olise with Eze in behind them is very, very exciting. So, if Palace can pull that one off, there’ll be looking even better than they were before.”

The Senegal international is reportedly available for just £25m.

He can be Wilfried Zaha 2.0

Wilfried Zaha has been Palace’s talisman for many years now, becoming something of a cult hero and scoring 84 goals along the way. He is their 11th-highest scorer of all time, needing just 16 more to become the Eagles' ninth centurion in that regard.

It will therefore take something incredibly special to replace the 29-year-old, who has so often been linked with a move away from the club (and continues to be) but has remained at Selhurst Park ever since his return from Manchester United in 2015.

One man who could certainly come in and give it a good go is Watford winger Sarr, who has perhaps proven himself to be too good for the Championship and now seeks a stable Premier League team for whom he can become the main man.

His 13 goals and ten assists during the 2020/21 campaign in the second tier show that he was a cut above most players at that level, and during his two stints in England’s top flight, he has bagged ten goals and eight assists.

At just 24 years old, his speed and direct play combined with an eye for a goal make him a natural successor for the Ivorian, who is renowned for his trickery, and Palace are unlikely to say no to the opportunity to sign another “dangerous” attacker, as dubbed by the BBC's Sanny Rudravajhala.

Labelled “fantastic” and a “champion” by his former manager Claudio Ranieri, Sarr also boasted a 48% dribble success rate last season - just 1% lower than Zaha's 49%.

This further drives home the two players' similarities, as the dribbling capabilities combined with an eye for a goal suggests that the Senegal star very well could fill the Ivorian's shoes when the latter eventually leaves Selhurst Park.

Hopefully that won’t be any time soon, but if the Eagles were to move for Sarr, they would be safe in the knowledge that by the time that happens, they would have someone who is ready to step up just as he enters his prime years to perform to his level and be the next talisman for Vieira’s side.