Anderlecht striker Christian Kouamé has revealed he could have signed for Crystal Palace two years ago, only a serious knee injury threw a spanner in the works.
Kouamé is currently on loan at Anderlecht after joining from Fiorentina in the summer when Vincent Kompany sought out a replacement for Lukas Nmecha.
It’s the first time he’s played outside of Italy in his career so far, having started out at Prato Youth before joining Sassuolo, Cittadella Genoa and then Fiorentina.
It was at Genoa where he really stood out on the big stage, with nine goals and nine assists in 51 games in all competitions earning admiring glances from the Premier League.
Crystal Palace were the club who were most interested in him and were linked on several occasions across 2019, with it claimed at one stage there was an agreement in place.
That though was scuppered by a serious knee injury, with Kouamé’s agent later revealing the move would have happened had it not occurred.
That’s something the striker has now backed up in a recent chat with Het Laatste Nieuws about his career so far.
“You know, I was about to sign with Crystal Palace at the end of 2019,” he told them
“The Premier League is a league I dream of, just like the Bundesliga. But my severe cruciate ligament injury, which I suffered at the Ivorian U23, threw a spanner in the works…
“It was really a serious setback. I asked God why he didn’t let me leave for England.
“At the same time, I realized that it was still a privilege to be allowed to be a pro. It was just not my moment yet.”
