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Bundesliga outfit Bayer Leverkusen have joined the race to sign Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic in the summer transfer window according to Sport Bild, via Buli News.

What's the word, then?

Alongside West Ham United and now the German side, Crystal Palace are interested in the prolific centre-forward who the Cottagers are valuing at £30m, per The Mirror's live transfer blog at 9:14pm on June 12.

However, the Germany-based newspaper Sport Bild believe that Mitrovic would be costing buying clubs just €20m this summer, or a mere £17.8m.

The 48-cap Serbian international has just enjoyed an impressive season despite the Craven Cottage club's relegation from the Premier League, notching 11 goals in all competitions after a permanent move from Newcastle United.

Extra competition a blessing in disguise

Extra competition for the Eagles to beat to Mitrovic's signature is a blessing in disguise, increasing Roy Hodgson's chances of missing out on his 6 ft 2 target.

You simply can't judge the Serbian on one campaign in the English top flight as impressive as it was in a doomed Cottagers team.

The thing that some people forget is that the ex-Partizan Belgrade man had played in the Premier League before he moved to west London, initially on loan, midway through 2017/2018.

At St James' Park, the forward struggled to make an impact on the most competitive league in the world by scoring just once in six forgettable performances having made the step up from the Championship with the Magpies in 2017.

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What Palace have been lacking for a long time and what they really need in the next few months is a proven Premier League goalscorer, something that Mitrovic just isn't yet.

Give it a couple more terms of consistently finding the back of the net in the top flight and yeah, the intimidating attacker would be perfect for Hodgson's men.

However, the fact remains that he's just too young and unproven to take on the responsibilities that would be required of him at Selhurst Park. And he is too much of a risk for an amount that could easily make up most of the club's budget this window.