Welcome back! Not just the words on the lips of Premier League officials, but also our words, as we herald the return of the FYP Transfer Tracker with aplomb!
Forget Championship budgets, we're in a whole new world of money madness with the club's promotion to the Premier League just a week gone. So, here's Robert Sutherland...
In
Javier Acuna
Just a day after Palace confirmed their place in the Prem, one football agent made sure his clients name got some exposure. Acuna, a 24-year-old Real Madrid youth player, was immediately linked with a move to the Eagles. He hasn't played a minute for the Real first team but scored 20 goals in two recent loan spells at Girona.
Eagles co-chairman Steve Parish told the South London Press the Spaniard was on the club's radar. We know he's available, he's on our radar - a player of interest," he said. "Acuna was someone we were looking at as a Championship club and we're obviously in a different situation now."
Likeliness: 7/10
Peter Odemwinge
Uh oh! We've talked about character and the way in which Palace's helped the club win promotion, so the possibility of such a destabilising individual signing for the Eagles might go against all of that. The Nigerian international hit the headlines in January for turning up outside QPR's Loftus Road stadium on deadline day without actually having permission from West Brom.
He's been linked with Palace in the Express & Star but expect him to be sat in Sainsburys car park on the last day of this summer's window then, chowing down on a BLT sandwich waiting for that call from Ollie.
Likeliness: 3/10
Darren Bent
Ah yes, D-Bent, the striker on something like £80,000-per-week at Aston Villa is possibly one of the most lazy links to Palace in a long time (in The Metro). Lazy because, well, Bent hasn't played at Villa, he's possibly looking for a club, and Palace are in need of a striker with the long-term injury to Glenn Murray.
Should Bent take a wage cut (we're talking a cut down to £20-30k per week) there could possibly be a chance. But would Bent seriously consider such a move?
Likeliness: 1/10
Chris Eagles
More of a 'we'd like' rather than a 'he'd like', Eagles was a top performer in the Championship and would be an ideal signing for a burgeoning Premier League club (it still feels weird to write that, by the way.) Plus of course we already sing his name each week!
A rumour that's been doing the rounds on Twitter this one, If Palace are to make the climb up a prolonged one, the Ian Holloway and co. would do well to focus on signing Championship players capable of supporting such a stint.
Likeliness: 3/10
Will Buckley/Liam Bridcutt
To add insult to the massive injury that was our 2-0 win at the Amex in the biggest game to have been held there, there has been talk of the Eagles swooping on the Seagulls for two of their brightest stars. Bridcutt was a player Palace perhaps should have signed during George Burley's short spell at the club; the player had been on trial for a few weeks but Burley opted not to take him.
Another Twitter rumour, Buckley is a player who has impressed in the Championship this season (and last), and while the comparisons with Zaha were a bit far-fetched (he's no Zaha...), he would certainly add strength to Palace's attacking options.
Likeliness: 5/10
Barry Bannan
Talented with good pace and an eye for a good pass, Bannan is one of the youngsters who saw action at Aston Villa last season. While the likelihood is that he'll feature at Villa more prominently next season, it's nice to see Palace linked with such a player in the Express & Star.
Likeliness: 2/10
David Vaughan
A player Palace were linked with back in the January transfer window, probably based on the fact Mile Jedinak was out injured and Vaughan had worked well with Holloway at Blackpool.
Since then he went on to star in Sunderland's relegation avoidance under Paolo di Canio so could be hard to prise away from the Stadium of Light, despite being linked in the Sunderland Echo.
Likeliness: 4/10
Charlie Adam
Another former Blackpool player linked to Holloway, and admittedly the Scottish internatinal worked wonders for Olly at the Seasiders.
And after a troubling time at Stoke it makes sense for the link, seen in various places like the Mirror and Mail, but wages could be a problem.
Likliness: 6/10
David Bentley
We've not seen him mentioned anywhere else other in a Daily Mail piece about Javier Acuna, but a player with immense promise the start of his career, Bentley has looked more like a Trabant (a car reference for you) in recent seasons.
His big move to Spurs was a big flop (promising midfielder, transfers to Tottenham, flops - where have we heard that before!?!?) and was followed by loan moves to various clubs including FC Rostov in Russia and most recently Blackburn. Thirty appearances in two and a bit seasons doesn't do him many favours.
Likeliness: 4/10
Danny Gabbidon
Crystal Palace today confirmed that centre-back Danny Gabbidon has extended his contract with the club by another season. The vastly-experienced defender played a crucial role in Palace's promotion-charge with some outstanding performances for the Eagles during the play-offs.
Status: confirmed.
Amido Balde
A powerful centre-forward hailing from Portugal, Amido Balde is reported to be subject to a bid in excess of £2m from Crystal Palace. The newspapers reporting on the story also suggest that the player is being looked at by Celtic, although there seems to be a hint of an agent’s influence in the reports that we’ve read. He’ll probably end up signing a bigger, better contract at his current club, Vitoria Guimaraes.
Likeliness: 5/10
Roman Golobart
Young Spanish centre-back Roman Golobart is out-of-contract at Wigan Athletic and, with Palace needing perhaps one more defender to add depth to the strength it already has, a move could be likely. Golobart didn’t feature much for Wigan – making just three appearances for the club since signing in 2009 – spending time on loan with Inverness Caledonian Thistle and Tranmere instead.
Likeliness: 4/10
Tom Ince/Matt Phillips/Alex Baptiste
Holloway Raids Former Club – a predictable headline but one that, given the players he’s looking at, surely makes sense. While the likelihood of signing Ince is reduced due to the supposed interest from Liverpool, there is a reasonable chance that the club might succeed in their bid for Phillips. As a player to replace Zaha, the Scottish winger might just be what Holloway needs. Reports also suggest that former manager Dougie Freedman is locked in a battle of wills with Holloway for versatile, experienced defender Alex Baptiste.
Likeliness: 6/10
OUT
Jermaine Easter
Often crucified, rarely resurrected, Easter has been on his way out from Selhurst Park for some time and it looks like local, Championship-level rivals Millwall are the outfit ready to offer him an opportunity. He scored a few important goals for Palace, but also scored few goals - a panic signing after CPFC2010 bought the club, he still deserves our thanks for the effort he put in, even if the quality was lacking.
Bayan Fenwick/Kads Daniel/Jack Holland
Palace also announced the departure of a number of youth players who weren't offered new contracts. These players are William Johnson-Cole, Kieran Woodley, Aaron Akuruka, Bayan Fenwick and Jack Holland. Kadell Daniel was offered a new deal but turned it down. Of those departing, the most surprising seems to be Bayan Fenwick, who impressed with the club in pre-season last season. With a number of highly-regarded players graduating through the youth system however, the move seems to be a reasonable one.
We wish them all the best in the next steps in their careers!
Whoever comes in or goes out this season, we'll keep you up to date, right here on the FYP Transfer Tracker!