Marc Guehi to Liverpool transfer moves closer as Crystal Palace draw up plan

Crystal Palace are bracing themselves for the potential departure of their captain, Marc Guehi, and have begun scouting for replacements. With Guehi in the final year of his contract at Selhurst Park, the club is aware they must sell now or face losing him on a free transfer next year. Liverpool initiated discussions to sign the England international on 12 August and remain interested in the 26-year-old centre-back.

It's understood that Guehi is open to a move to the reigning Premier League champions, who are looking to bolster their defensive options beyond Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate. Negotiations stalled earlier this month due to disagreements over the player's valuation, with Palace demanding £45million for their star defender, while Liverpool are unwilling to exceed £35m. However, talks are expected to resume following Palace's Conference League play-off against Fredrikstad on Thursday night.

Palace boss Oliver Glasner has admitted that the club needed to retain Guehi until at least that match due to a shortage of alternatives, but he acknowledges that chairman Steve Parish is open to selling. The south London outfit have been proactive in preparing for Guehi's potential exit by identifying possible replacements.

They expressed an interest in Manchester City's Manuel Akanji earlier this week and have reportedly made a loan offer to Monaco for Mohammed Salisu. However, neither deal is guaranteed, with Bayer Leverkusen and Galatasaray also vying for Akanji, and Olympiakos showing interest in Salisu.

Palace have also been linked with Rennes' Jeremy Jacquet and Toulouse's Jaydee Canvot, but Akanji would represent the most experienced option. The 30-year-old Switzerland international has two years remaining on his City deal and Palace were reportedly prepared to table £15m for his signature.

Eberechi Eze has departed for Arsenal in a £67.5m switch and Palace remain without a replacement for the creative midfielder. Yeremy Pino is poised to arrive from Villarreal following an agreement worth up to £26m, whilst Arsenal's Reiss Nelson and Club Brugge's Christos Tzolis are additional targets after negotiations for Leicester's Bilal El Khannouss collapsed.

There is recognition that Guehi will shortly require replacing as well. Following the 1-0 triumph over Fredrikstad last week, Parish told Channel 5: "If Marc wants to sign a new contract then he can stay! It's a difficult situation. Everyone has to sell players to comply with the rules. That's a situation that we will have to look at in the next 11 days."

Liverpool have already secured defender Giovanni Leoni from Parma for £26m, but desire additional reinforcements at the back, with Joe Gomez the sole alternative to Van Dijk and Konate. The displays of Konate have caused concern in the opening three fixtures of the campaign and underlined the significance of securing Guehi.

The summer transfer window is set to slam shut on Monday evening, which could see Guehi play his last two matches for Palace against Fredrikstad on Thursday and Aston Villa on Sunday.