Palace are on the verge of missing out on another done-deal after more haggling over agents’ fees.
Yesterday, the club officially announced the season-long loan signing of Aliou Cisse from Birmingham – even going so far as to organise a photo-call for the player.
But the Senegalese star was a no-show after negotiations with his agent Willie McKay broke down. As with the ill-fated Tim Cahill deal, the finger of blame is being pointed squarely at a refusal to pay the agent’s requested fees.
And as the Eagles summer transfer dealings descend further into farce, the whole move now appears certain to be hijacked by Portsmouth. The south-coast club have put in a bid of around £300,000 to take the player on a permanent basis.
Pompey chairman Milan Mandaric is confident his club can snatch Cisse from under Palace’s nose.
"I don't see any problems," Mandaric told skysports.com. "We agreed terms with Birmingham and those things are going forward positively. I expect it to take place some time during the day."