Crystal Palace sign Europa League defender and £25m wonderkid in stunning January transfer prediction
We asked AI to predict Crystal Palace’s January transfer window and saw interesting results
The January transfer window means an opportunity for Premier League clubs to strengthen their squads ahead of the second half of the season.
This includes south London outfit Crystal Palace, who have seen a strong start to the season slow down in recent weeks as the demands of competing in Europe for the first time with a limited squad take full effect.
The Eagles are faced with somewhat of a daunting 2026 as several key first-team players continue to be linked with an exit to some of the biggest clubs across the Premier League and Europe.
Head coach Oliver Glasner will hope that the winter window is heavily focused on incomings, though, and has previously expressed dissatisfaction with the level of investment made by the Palace board in the playing squad.
We decided to ask X’s Grok AI to predict Crystal Palace’s January transfer window and were given some surprising results.
Players who Crystal Palace could sign in January transfer window predicted
First of all, the Eagles have already completed their first permanent signing of the transfer window, bringing in Tottenham Hotspur winger Brennan Johnson for £35 million. The Welshman had found minutes hard to come by under Thomas Frank and will make a useful addition for Palace, boasting impressive experience in the top flight and in Europe and adding depth and quality to their forward options.
In addition, Palace have been linked with promising 19-year-old French talent Sidiki Cherif, who has also received interest from Paris FC. Grok predicts that the Eagles will get a move over the line for the Angers forward for around £15m, though it is possible that the Premier League outfit might need to up that figure in order to seal a deal.
Grok also predicted an ambitious move for Kees Smit, a highly-rated Dutch midfielder who has attracted interest from the likes of Manchester United, Newcastle and Real Madrid. The 19-year-old could be viewed as the eventual successor to Adam Wharton in the middle of the park in south London.
Finally, completing an impressive quartet of January arrivals to Selhurst Park is Zakaria El Ouadhi according to Grok. The Genk right-back could cost between £15m-£20m and would serve as an effective understudy to or potential replacement for Daniel Munoz, who has spent time out injured.
Players who Crystal Palace could sell in January transfer window predicted
Crystal Palace may also have to contend with first-team departures this January and that was acknowledged by Grok, predicting that they may sell captain Marc Guehi in order to avoid the 25-year-old departing the club for nothing next summer. An offer of £20m-£30m could be enough to tempt the club to sell mid-season, leaving behind a tough task to find a replacement.
Not seen as part of Glasner’s plans, midfielder Naourirou Ahamada could also depart the Eagles in January for a £5m-£10m fee, or on loan to earn more minutes.
He could be followed out of the door by Christantus Uche, who arrived on loan in the summer but has received few opportunities and may see his season-long deal terminated for an early return to Getafe.
In addition, the AI pointed out that low-fee exits could be possible for Jefferson Lerma, Daichi Kamada or Nathaniel Clyne, all of whom see their contracts run out in 2026 and with the club yet to make a decision on new long-term deals.