Wolves and Crystal Palace Want to Sign ‘Duel Monster’ Defender

Crystal Palace and Wolverhampton Wanderers are set to compete for Red Star Belgrade defender Nasser Djiga, according to Mike McGrath.

Both Premier League outfits are on the lookout for defensive reinforcements before the transfer window slams shut at 11pm on Monday. Wolves were initially close to sealing a deal for Lens center-back Kevin Danso before Tottenham swooped in to hijack the move.

Meanwhile, Palace have been dealt a major setback after Trevoh Chalobah‘s loan at Selhurst Park was cut short by his parent club Chelsea earlier in January. An injury to Chadi Riad has seen him ruled out of action for the rest of the season too, which has forced the Eagles into a desperate pursuit of an eleventh-hour deal for a new defender.

Palace Set to Rival Wolves for Djiga

The 22-year-old has eight caps for his national team

In a report to X (formerly Twitter), McGrath revealed that Wolves have already had an approach for Djiga pushed back but were contemplating whether to return for the Burkina Faso international. Dubbed a “duel monster,” the 22-year-old has made 27 appearances this term, including 10 in the Champions League.

Vitor Pereira and his entourage must act quickly if they are serious about their interest, as they cannot afford to lose out on another target, having already missed opportunities to land Danso and midfielder Manu Silva, who joined Benfica earlier this window.

Crystal Palace have purportedly sounded out the prospect of signing Djiga, though they have been linked with other center-backs recently as well. That includes AC Milan defender Strahinja Pavlovic and Union Berlin’s Danilho Doekhi. A deal for the former may be difficult, given the Serie A outfit could be prepared to ask for a fee in the region of £35 million, per Alan Nixon.

Doekhi is also of interest to the Wolves, according to Pete O’Rourke, and the midlands-based outfit is thought to be “plotting” an approach for the 26-year-old ahead of the Monday transfer window deadline.