Former Real Madrid keeper Diego Lopez on Crystal Palace’s radar as Roy Hodgson grows confident of landing the Spaniard
According to reports, the Espanyol stopper is top of Hodgson's list of candidates to play between the sticks at Selhurst Park after uncertainty over Wayne Hennessey and Julian Speroni
ROY HODGSON is confident of landing Espanyol keeper Diego Lopez, according to reports.
The 36-year-old stopper is seen by Hodgson as the man to bolster their ranks between the sticks with Wayne Hennessey and Julian Speroni sharing goalkeeping duties at Selhurst Park.
Spaniard Lopez was Real Madrid’s No1 when they won the Champions League in 2014 and has played for AC Milan as well as Espanyol since.
There is no doubt Hodgson has improved the team at Palace, after some big wins since the returns of Wilfried Zaha and Christian Benteke from injury.
That is despite a farcical end to their 2-2 draw with Bournemouth on Saturday, where Benteke had a poor penalty saved - that he should not have taken.
But according to the , Hodgson has identified goalkeeping as a “problem position” for the club.
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And he has not been impressed enough with Hennessey and Speroni to keep them battling for the No1 jersey.
Palace host Watford tonight in a crucial midweek Premier League clash that could see them finally climb off the bottom of the table with a win.
The Eagles have actually conceded as many goals this season as their opponents with 27 shipped in the league, and Hodgson will be looking at that area as somewhere he can improve.
At the age of 36, Lopez has had to play behind team-mate Pau Lopez at Espanyol - and will be looking to get more game time in goal.
He was at AC Milan until the emergence of teen sensation Gianluigi Donnarumma in 2015, with the youngster now being linked to Paris Saint-Germain.