- Guehi impressed on his major tournament debut for England against Serbia
- Crystal Palace are not giving up hope of keeping the defender at Selhurst Park
- LISTEN to It’s All Kicking Off! Were England good in their opener or is the criticism fair?
Crystal Palace will fight to keep England international Marc Guehi this summer amid major interest in the talented centre-back.
The 23-year-old emerged as one of the heroes of Sunday night’s tense win over Serbia in Gelsenkirchen as the Eagles star played a lead role in securing a clean sheet on what was his major international tournament debut.
A host of Premier League sides – Manchester United, Tottenham and Liverpool among them – are closely monitoring Guehi ahead of next season.
The centre half has just two years left to run on his existing contract at Selhurst Park with rival clubs preparing to pounce on Palace’s reluctance to let their star man enter the final 12 months of his deal.
But while Palace realise they face a major battle to keep Guehi this summer, they are not giving up hope of keeping him.
Guehi has put any decision over his future on hold as he focuses on England’s Euro 2024 campaign here in Germany.
However, when he returns from international duty, Palace are set to explore the possibility of offering the talented defender a contract extension.
It remains to be seen whether Guehi would even be open to signing fresh terms given the fact there is likely to be top level interest in him over the coming weeks.
In addition to offering him a pay increase, Palace may also try to tempt Guehi into extending by inserting a buy-out clause into his next contract, allowing him to leave Selhurst Park for a set price.
It is a tactic that the club have used successfully previously to convince their best players to commit to new contracts in the face of rival interest.
Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze, who have both signed new contracts over the past 12 months, have release clauses in their deals.
But even Palace cannot successfully tie Guehi down to an extension, it is likely the south London club will demand a fee of at least £65million for the Chelsea academy graduate.
It has been noted that Everton have placed a £70million valuation on their young centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite, who was kept out of the England squad by Guehi.
And if Palace believe they have no option but to sell Guehi during this transfer window, he will not come cheaply.