[ad_pod ]

This article is part of Football FanCast's In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets... 

Back in the summer, Crystal Palace were strongly linked with a move for CSKA Moscow striker Fedor Chalov.

Reports even suggested that the Eagles made a £14m bid for the Russia international, which was rejected by the side who impressively beat Real Madrid inside the Bernabeu in last season's Champions League - Chalov found the net in that game.

Russian outlet Championat reported that the south Londoners would be making an improved offer for the 21-year-old, although it appears that no second bid was officially made.

Presumably, the man with 33 goals in total for CSKA will remain on Palace's radar given his fine start to the campaign.

Chalov has three goals and two assists in nine Russian Premier League appearances so far this term, and his style continues to suggest that he would be a better fit under Roy Hodgson than Christian Benteke is.

We recently outlined why Jordan Ayew's impressive start to the campaign, coupled with Benteke's goalless run of form and spell out of the starting XI, proves that the target man era at Selhurst Park is no more, while Hodgson is in charge at least.

So, with Chalov standing at 5 foot 11 - one inch smaller than Ayew - and maintaining his impressive goalscoring knack by building on his 15 goals from 2018/19, the Russian striker would be a much better fit for Palace right now than Benteke.

His goals in the above video from the Russian Premier League's official YouTube channel showcase how effective Chalov is with the ball at his feet, further reinforcing his suitability to Hodgson's system, while also weakening any argument someone might have for Benteke's hopes under the former England manager.

Chalov is an instinctive goalscorer whose movement in and around the box appears to be very good - based on his excellent start to the season, Palace should re-enter the bidding when the transfer window reopens.