Crystal Palace boss Patrick Vieira has sounded out hope of Chelsea loanee Conor Gallagher’s return to Selhurst Park for the new season.
The newly capped England international was one of the standout performers for Vieira at Selhurst Park this campaign with Gallagher netting eight goals and registering three assists in his 34 league outings.
His impressive season-long loan stint in the Palace shirt, however, has given birth to talk that the Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel would be keen on the 22-year-old staying put in the English capital beyond the summer transfer window and earn a berth on the Chelsea team sheet.
Tuchel has time and again insisted that he will give Gallagher a chance to prove himself during pre-season but that has not stopped Palace manager Vieira from remaining keen on landing the midfielder on a permanent basis.
A report from The Daily Star has quoted the Arsenal icon admitting that the Eagles are right in the mix, besides the likes of Everton and West Ham United, to approach Chelsea for Gallagher’s signature.
“Yes I think the fans love him. I love him. The players in the dressing room respect and love him.
“I think it was a really good season for Conor. What made us proud is that he came to this football club for a year and he is leaving this football club as a really different player. He’s an international player now. We played our part. And he played his part as well. Now we wish him good luck and we wait and see what will happen. But we may have a player in the squad already who can replace him.”
