Crystal Palace defender Mamadou Sakho 'close to Nice switch'

Mamadou Sakho ‘closing in on switch to Nice after falling out of favour under Roy Hodgson at Crystal Palace’… with ex-Liverpool centre back set to join up with Arsenal loanee William Saliba in France

  • Mamdou Sakho is set to complete a January move to Nice, according to reports 
  • The defender has played just five times for Roy Hodgson’s side this season
  • The 30-year-old would join Arsenal’s William Saliba as a new signing at Nice
  • Saliba and Sakho are needed as Nice veteran Dante is out for several months  

Mamadou Sakho is set to leave Crystal Palace for French side Nice, according to reports. 

The central defender has been at Selhurst Park for the past four years but has been limited to just four Premier League appearances all season with Gary Cahill, Cheick Kouyate, Scott Dann James Tomkins ahead of him in the pecking order.

Sportsmail revealed earlier this week that Eagles manager Roy Hodgson is keen to offload both Tomkins and 30-year-old Sakho in a bid to reduce the average age of the squad.

Mamadou Sakho is set to leave Crystal Palace for Nice this window, according to reports

The deal would be Nice’s second centre-back signing of the window after William Saliba (left)

And according to French newspaper Nice-Matin, Sakho is set to become Nice’s second defensive signing of the January window following William Saliba’s loan move from Arsenal. 

Saliba moved on a six-month loan after failing to make a senior appearance for the Gunners since returning from his Saint-Etienne loan spell in the summer. 

The 19-year-old was a £27million signing made while Unai Emery was in charge but returned to former club Saint-Etienne on loan to improve his development. 

Sakho has played 74 times at Selhurst Park since 2017 but has featured just five times this term

Saliba wasted no time in getting in the thick of the action for new club Nice by making his debut just hours after joining the club on Wednesday night.

The defender was booked in the first-half as Nice went on to lose 2-0 away at mid-table Brest.

Sakho and Saliba’s services are required after veteran defender Dante had his season cut short with an anterior cruciate ligament at the beginning of November. 

Nice need centre-back reinforcements as veteran Dante (above) has a long-term ACL problem

The Brazilian defender’s contract is up at the end of the season and Sakho has been deemed as a cheap alternative given the defender’s Palace contract also expires this summer. 

Sakho has played 74 times for the Eagles, scoring just once in his four-year spell at Selhurst Park. 

Before that, he played 80 times in all competitions for Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers and Jurgen Klopp where he won a League Cup runners-up medal. 




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