Crystal Palace's next January transfer could be £30m Aston Villa striker
Crystal Palace are expected to end the winter window with a flurry of incoming signings - including a surprise swoop for an Aston Villa forward.
Crystal Palace are reportedly in talks with Aston Villa over a bold move to sign forward Evann Guessand - with Sky Sports even reporting that the Ivorian forward was travelling to London to complete the deal at the time of publication.
Oliver Glasner’s side are currently in free fall after a run of eight league matches without a win as well as an early FA Cup exit which nobody saw coming at the hands of sixth-tier Macclesfield FC. The Eagles agreed to sell long-serving club captain Marc Guéhi to Manchester City six months before his contract was due to expire and are also at risk of losing their top scorer Jean Philippe-Mateta in the near future, with the Frenchman reportedly expressing a desire to leave Selhurst Park in the near future.
Palace are reported to be closing in on a club-record deal for Wolves forward Jørgen Strand Larsen, but may also look to enhance their frontline further by bringing in Guessand before the window closes. The proposed double swoop only intensifies reports of uncertainty surrounding the future of Mateta, amid reports of interest from Nottingham Forest - but may also offer Glasner’s side some fresh firepower up front.
Crystal Palace ‘in talks’ to sign Guessand
David Ornstein of the Athletic first reported that Crystal Palace were “in talks” to sign Guessand before the window closes - and the deal appears to be progressing at a rapid pace.
The report stated that Palace are pushing to sign the Ivory Coast international on a six-month loan deal until the end of the season. Fabrizio Romano later added that any deal is likely to include an option to buy clause. Villa recently signed Tammy Abraham to compete with Ollie Watkins which is likely to push Guessand down the pecking order, and the Midlands outfit seem content to let him leave not long after he arrived.
Guessand only joined Villa in August from French club OGC Nice in a deal worth around £30.4m, but has struggled to make an impact at his new club, making just 13 league appearances and failing to register a single Premier League goal or assist. That brief and fruitless stay now seems likely to end without a goal contribution as he heads to pastures new.
Why Crystal Palace are interested in Guessand
After a stellar start to the season which saw Crystal Palace build on their FA Cup triumph with a stunning 19-match unbeaten run stretching all the way back to last season, the Eagles now find themselves at slight risk of relegation.
The London side have 28 points and are eight clear of West Ham but have struggled to build any momentum throughout 2026 so far. The Eagles will want to avoid being dragged into a dogfight in the coming months and will also hope to improve their consistency in the Conference League after an inconsistent start to life in Europe’s third-tier competition.
Signing Guessand could give them the boost they need and potentially kickstart the footballer’s career in England. It’s worth noting that prior to joining Villa, the forward scored 12 goals and registered nine assists in his final Ligue 1 season. He mainly played as a right-winger in this period but also showed his prowess by performing well in the centre forward position and occasionally the left wing, offering both versatility and - under the right circumstances at least - a potential goal threat.
Guessand is renowned for his excellent pace, ball control and physicality which makes him a challenge to deal with at his best. While he also boasts a fairly steady goal record in his final two seasons in France, his time in the Premier League has belied his previous accomplishments - and he could still prove to be a shrewd acquisition by Palace, a side who have seldom erred in the transfer market in recent seasons.