Fabrizio Romano confirms the signing of the goalkeeper
Crystal Palace has secured the services of the goalkeeper Sam Johnstone. The Englishman joins the Eagles on a free transfer. Johnstone has a contract with West Bromwich Albion till June 30. This means he is most likely to miss out on pre-season training which begins on the 27th of June. Sam Johnstone is the first signing for Palace under Patrick Viera.
Crystal Palace gave assurances of playing time
Tottenham Hotspurs and Manchester United were also keen on signing the 29-year-old. However, they could give no guarantee of minutes with the first team. Crystal Palace have struck gold in the keeper. Sam Johnstone started his career with Manchester United. He was shuttled out on loan to gain some first-team experience. However, he moved to West Bromwich in 2018 for a fee of £6.5 million.
Johnstone has had 167 appearances for West Brom. He was the club’s player of the year in their Premier League season of 2020-21. This fantastic performance for a struggling side caught the eye of England manager Gareth Southgate. Sam Johnstone is a talented player with experience. He knows the Premier League well. Moreover, there is no transfer fee involved in this move. This is a steal for Crystal Palace!
In January, English footballing legend Glenn Hoddle was all praises for the goalkeeper. In his column in the Evening Standard he waxed lyrical about him. “I really like Sam Johnstone, the goalkeeper at West Brom,” he said “I think he is ready for one of the top six clubs to go and get him. I’ve seen him four times this year and he has been outstanding.” Johnstone will compete with the 35-year-old Vicente Guaita for the position. However, the Englishman is already being dubbed as a long term successor for the Spaniard
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