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According to Calciomercato, Crystal Palace are set to miss out on Udinese midfielder Seko Fofana.

What's the deal, then?

The Ivorian is expected to leave the Serie A club in the coming weeks; however the Eagles are supposedly going to lose him to fellow Italian side Atalanta, as per Calciomercato.

Palace and Newcastle were both said to be interested in the 24-year-old, who scored 10 goals in 84 appearances last season after moving from Manchester City.

But it is thought they will not be able to secure the deal as they cannot compete with Atalanta, who surprisingly qualified for the Champions League last season after finishing third in the league - above Roma, Inter and Milan.

And their success has led to them negotiating with the €15m (£13.3m) rated midfielder who is said to have ‘already given his availability to the transfer’.

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Palace's enquiry about Fofana could worry Meyer

Fofana is a box-to-box type midfielder who prides himself on having the engine to win possession back from deep and drive the play forward, contributing in the final third too having picked up four assists and having averaged 1.9 shots and 1.2 key passes in each of his 30 league appearances in 2018/19 - all higher numbers than Meyer's last term.

Now, given the two systems Roy Hodgson preferred to play last season - 4-3-3 and 4-4-2 - it is clear a player like Fofana is much more suited to those formations than someone like Max Meyer.

The German has largely been a No.10 throughout his career and therefore there isn't a natural place for him in that role in either of the aforementioned systems.

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The interest in Fofana must worry him as the Udinese man is a a much more balanced midfielder and is the right fit for how Hodgson wishes to play.

Meyer's debut campaign in English football certainly didn't go to plan under Roy Hodgson, with only 15 of his 29 Premier League appearances coming in the starting XI.

He will hope to improve upon that record next term, but the fact that Palace are seemingly actively searching out midfield players more suited to the Eagles than he is must surely be concerning.