Atlético Madrid have put Crystal Palace striker Jean-Philippe Mateta on their shortlist and aren’t put off by a €50m asking price.
That’s according to Fichajes.net, who report that the Spanish side are already aware of Crystal Palace’s asking price and not put off by it.
They report that Mateta could be living out his final months in the Premier League as he has aroused the interest of Atlético ahead of the summer.
They want to strengthen their attack and the striker, with his ‘strength and goal-scoring instinct’, is one of the options that the Spanish side are considering.
Crystal Palace are aware of this and have put a €50m asking price on Mateta’s head. That’s a considerable figure but it hasn’t put Atlético immediately off. Instead, they are still keeping a close eye on his situation and cold even try to negotiate a lower price in the summer.
The belief is that the Crystal Palace striker would fit in perfectly under Diego Simeone. He wants a striker with the ability to pin down centre-backs with his back to goal and ‘provide forcefulness’ inside the box.
Several of the current attacking options in the current squad have uncertain futures ahead of them and so Mateta is being eyes in case there are departures.
For now, he’s just a name being looked at and, given the source, we’d urge caution and a healthy pinch of salt, but the insistence is that he’s on Atlético’s list.
