Crystal Palace fans ‘so upset’ after seeing who West Ham have signed – ‘should have been us’

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Crystal Palace and West Ham often shop in the same areas of the market.

The Eagles and the Hammers memorably went head-to-head over the signing of Jarrod Bowen back in January 2020 before West Ham eventually struck a £20m agreement with Hull.

Crystal Palace and West Ham were also both in the market for Eberechi Eze – now wanted by Arsenal – before the man born in Greenwich chose south London over east London, leaving QPR in a £19.5m deal back in August 2020.

Those at Selhurst Park have even signed two players from West Ham in recent times, taking James Tomkins and Cheikhou Kouyate in the summers of 2016 and 2018 respectively.

El Hadji Malick Diouf was also a target for the Premier League duo, but sealed a £19m move from Slavia Prague to West Ham in July – a decision Crystal Palace fans are now starting to bemoan.

Crystal Palace fans left jealous as El Hadji Malick Diouf begins to shine for West Ham

TBR Football understand Crystal Palace tried to sign Diouf back in January, but opted to take Ben Chilwell on loan from Chelsea instead as the Senegal international hesitated over a move in the middle of the season.

The Eagles then decided to sign Borna Sosa from Ajax in a £3m deal instead of making another push for the 20-year-old this summer, and Crystal Palace fans now seem quite annoyed by this.

One Crystal Palace supporter opined that the Eagles “fumbled this” deal “so badly” after watching footage of Diouf set up Jarrod Bowen with a devilish, whipped cross from his left wing-back position.

Another then added “oh brother we missed (out) bad” after seeing the video.

Two more Crystal Palace fans expressed jealousy over Diouf – who Liverpool also had a look at before signing Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth this summer.

One commented: “Diouf balls to (Jean-Philippe) Mateta were what we deserved.”

A fourth supporter paid reference to the fact West Ham can also boast Aaron Wan-Bissaka, a Crystal Palace academy graduate, on the other flank, posting: “I’m so upset. AWB and Diouf, this should have been us.”

Last but not least, two more Crystal Palace fans expressed pain at the fact West Ham managed to sign the man born in Ziguinchor ahead of them.

One wrote: “This is who we needed man, how have West Ham pulled this off? We scouted him for like two years smh (shake my head).”

A sixth Crystal Palace fan added: “Everything I’ve seen from Diouf since he joined has really made me think we’ve dropped the ball on that one last (season).”

Borna Sosa made more sense for Crystal Palace

Diouf does appear to be a sensational player – particularly when it comes to crossing the ball – although signing Sosa for just £3m made more sense for Crystal Palace in the circumstances.

Graham Potter had a completely vacant spot on the left after Aaron Cresswell was released, allowing him to splash out a significant sum on a marquee signing for that position.

However, Oliver Glasner already has Tyrick Mitchell for that role, so it would have been unnecessary to spend £19m on a replacement – the Eagles merely needed reliable depth for the England international, which is exactly what the experienced Sosa will provide.