Crystal Palace are set to sign the 19-year-old Brazilian forward Matheus França from Flamengo in a deal worth up to £26m. França has emerged as Palace’s main attacking target after WilfriedZaha turned down a deal worth £200,000 a week to join Galatasaray last week.
França, who has represented Brazil at various youth levels and can play in a variety of forward roles, was also tracked by Chelsea and Newcastle after starring for Flamengo last season. Palace’s sporting director, Dougie Freedman, is believed to have played an instrumental role in the signing, having scouted França for some time.
França is expected to complete a medical on Monday before travelling to London to sign. It is understood the deal includes various bonuses, including €5m (£4.3m) if Franca is nominated for the Ballon d’Or and a 20% sell-on clause for any fee that exceeds the £17m Palace will pay up front.
Palace have signed Jefferson Lerma from Bournemouth on a free after the departures of Luka Milivojevic and James McArthur and remain hopeful of making further additions. But Eberechi Eze has not signed an extension to his contract that expires in 2025 and there is serious interest in several of Palace’s other leading players.
Liverpool have been linked with a move for midfielder Cheick Doucouré, and the defenders Joachim Andersen and Marc Guéhi have been linked with Newcastle and Tottenham respectively.
