What players have Crystal Palace been linked with?
Palace were among the lowest scorers in the Premier League last season, and that may well be the case again this campaign when you factor in the departure of talisman Zaha.
The Eagles approach the new campaign with Jordan Ayew, Jean-Philippe Mateta and Odsonne Edouard as their only centre-forward options.
Arsenal's Folarin Balogun and Eddie Nketiah have both been touted as possible targets for Palace to bolster their frontline, but as things stand it may well be Edouard who leads the line against Sheffield United on the opening weekend of the season.
Numerous wide players have also been linked, with Everton's Demarai Gray a regular in the gossip columns. According to Football Insider, Palace remain in the hunt for Gray, but they face competition from London rivals Fulham and big-spending teams in Saudi Arabia.
While the arrival of Gray may not sound all that exciting for Palace supporters, the 27-year-old - on wages of £25k-a-week, according to Capology - may be just the man to get the most out of Edouard.
How many goals has Demarai Gray scored?
Gray has scored nine goals in 67 Premier League appearances for Everton, which is a pretty poor return for an attacking midfielder who often plays as the focal point in attack.
However, he has averaged 0.29 goal involvements per 90 minutes across his career, which is not too dissimilar to Zaha (0.33), as per FBref. Indeed, it could be argued that Everton simply did not utilise Gray in the right way last season.
The 0.35 goals or assists combined the Jamaica international averaged per 90 the season before last may provide a better representation of his quality - the exact same figure Zaha and Edouard registered last season.
highlighted by his 173 crosses in the Premier League last season - only Dwight McNeil (194) registered more among Everton players - and that could be something Edouard takes full advantage of.The 6 foot 1 Frenchman scored four headed goals in the 2019-20 season with Celtic, yet he has scored just one in two seasons at Selhurst Park, making that an area Palace have yet to take full advantage of.
Gray also played 1.1 key passes per game for Everton last season which, while it may not sound like a huge amount on the face of it, was more than Zaha (one) managed.
Furthermore, Gray also ranks a lot higher than Zaha in terms of chances created - he is in the top 62% of all forwards across Europe's top five leagues in that metric, as per The Analyst, while the latter is only in the top 37%.
Described as a "quality" player by Jamaica manager Heimir Hallgrimsson, Gray possesses qualities that Roy Hodgson may just be able to get the most out of.
While he may not be the 15-goal striker Palace crave, Gray could at least help get more goals out of what the Eagles already
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