After signing Jeffrey Schlupp and Patrick van Aanholt earlier in the transfer window, Crystal Palace completed their business with the capture of Serbian international midfielder Luka Milivojevic from Greek side Olympiakos for an undisclosed fee, believed to be worth around £11 million.
Speaking to the club’s official website prior to the weekend loss at home to Sunderland, Palace boss Sam Allardyce provided an insight into how Milivojevic may fit into the Eagles midfield:
“He’s a defensive midfield player with great ability with both feet and is a really good passer. I’m not sure that Yohan and Punch’s roles are in that sitting position but this lad loves to play there and sees it has his main position. There’s no guarantee he’s going to jump straight into the Premier League and be fantastic – we hope he is – but I’m looking forward to working with him and getting him up to speed as quick as we can.”
The History
Milivojevic began his career at hometown club Radnički Kragujevac, making 17 appearances during the 2007/08 season, and scoring two goals, before moving to top-tier side FK Rad ahead of the 2008/09 campaign.
Over the next few seasons, he made 54 appearances, scoring three goals, prior to joining Red Star Belgrade in December 2011.
He stayed with Red Star for around 18 months, registering seven goals and six assists in 47 matches, before moving to Anderlecht in July 2013.
Milivojevic never really settled in Belgium, though, managing just two assists in 25 matches, before joining Olympiakos initially on loan in September 2014.
The Serbian was a regular starter for the Greek side, and joined on a permanent basis in June 2015 for a fee of around €2.3 million.
Over the course of his two-and-a-half seasons in Greece, Milivojevic racked up 15 goals and seven assists from 94 appearances, and helped the club to two league titles.
Milivojevic represented Serbia at U19 and U21 levels before making his senior debut against Chile in November 2012.
He currently has 19 caps to his name, but has yet to open his account for his country.
The Prospects
Having missed the weekend loss as untangles red tape surrounding a working visa, there’s hope that Milivojevic could be available for Palace’s upcoming clash with Stoke.
Discussing the new boy after Saturday’s chastening defeat, Big Sam reckons that the Serbian’s screening presence in front of the back-four will be vital:
“I think Luka will bring a bit of stability into midfield, and we need that. Teams keep getting through our midfield far too easily and far too many times. I didn’t see that at Bournemouth, but I have seen it again. The second goal [from Didier Ndong] was a stunner, but the disappointing thing for me is the third and fourth goals we told the centre-halves, you can’t let Jermain Defoe run behind you. And what have they let him do, they’ve let him run in behind them.”
Clearly, then, Milivojevic should help fill what has been a troublesome position for Palace since the departure of Mile Jedinak to Aston Villa last year.
Both Joe Ledley and Mathieu Flamini have been tasked to sit in front of the back four, or as the holding midfielder in a double-pivot in a 4-2-3-1 formation, and have struggled to make an impression.
Fellow central midfielders Yohan Cabaye and James McArthur are far better going forward than they are in terms of their defensive contributions, so the addition of the tenacious Milivojevic should help provide greater protection in front of what has been a vulnerable Palace defence.
Palace have conceded 45 goals in the 24 matches they’ve played so far, with only three teams boasting a worse defensive record. Indeed, last Tuesday night’s 2-0 win at Bournemouth was just the second time this season they have registered a clean sheet.
While Milivojevic’s goal scoring is very reasonable for a defensive-minded midfield player, due mostly due his shooting prowess from distance and dead-ball abilities, it’s unlikely he himself will be a viable Fantasy asset.
He’ll be battling with the likes of Cabaye and Jason Puncheon for set-piece duties, and is probably unlikely to force himself to the front of the queue.
The 25-year-old’s qualities were neatly summed up by Allardyce, who said the Serbian was “a talented two-footed player with intelligent passing ability as well as being very strong defensively, in and out of possession.”
He’s been handed a price tag of 5.0 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL), but with team-mate Wilfried Zaha, who has registered four goals and eight assists so far this season, available at 5.5, it’s the latter who should provide us with the strongest option from the Palace midfield.
But if he can provide a formidable shield in front of the Eagles rearguard, then the appeal of Palace defenders could rise once again.
Scott Dann reminded us of his abilities with a third of the season against the Cherries, while Van Aanholt and Schlupp (if played out of position on the flank) could also be viable options for our five-man backlines.
Palace’s schedule (sto, MID, wba) remains kind in the short-term, while they face favourable home match-ups against Leicester City, Burnley and Hull City during the final month of the season.
So while it’s unlikely that Milivojevic will pop up on our radars, he could well provide greater balance to the Eagles midfield, and become a key component in Allardyce’s ongoing quest to shore up his troubled defence.
