Crystal Palace have been eyeing a January transfer move for an upcoming Liverpool star

Crystal Palace's pursuit of Liverpool forward Ben Doak has ended for now with the Scotland international set to see out his loan at Middlesbrough.

The Eagles have submitted bids of £15m and £20m for the rising Reds star this month but both were rejected by the Anfield club. Doak joined Boro on a season-long loan in the summer but there was a break clause in the deal. However, the deadline for Liverpool to activate it and bring him back to Merseyside has now passed.

Palace were reportedly told £30m would be enough to tempt Liverpool to part company with the forward. For a deal to go through, the Reds would have needed to recall the youngster from his loan before sanctioning a permanent exit to Selhurst Park. Ipswich Town had also shown strong interest. With the deadline for a recall now passed, Palace's hopes of securing a deal this month have been dashed.

Delight for Carrick

Doak scored as Middlesbrough won 2-0 against West Brom on Tuesday night. The Riverside Stadium outfit are managed by former Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United player Michael Carrick who is delighted Doak is staying at the club as they seek to secure a place in the Championship play-offs.

He said: "The deadline has passed for Ben. I said all along I was calm! Obviously we’re really happy he’s here, but genuinely, it hasn’t been a big thing for us. He showed again tonight how dangerous he is and then scored a terrific goal. It’s something he can do a little bit more, come inside onto his left foot, because it’s something he’s good at as well. I’m delighted with it.

“He’s got that weapon and unique threat. The way he plays the game, everyone has their own strengths, but the way Ben plays the game, he’s always in the game and always a threat. We’re obviously happy he’ll be staying here. He’s a big role and he’ll continue to do that for the time that he’s here.”

Doak's career so far

Liverpool signed Doak from Celtic for £600,000 in 2022. The forward started to catch attention after impressive displays in the UEFA Youth League. He has 10 senior appearances under his belt with Liverpool. One of those came in the Reds' first Carabao Cup game in the 2023-24 campaign as Liverpool went on to win the competition. Doak did not play another game, however, after a serious injury set-back ruled him out for most of last campaign.

The player was set to head to Euro 2024 with Scotland but an injury in training dashed his hopes of representing his country at a major tournament.

Since joining Middlesbrough, he has scored three goals and provided six assists in 23 games. Speaking about the player in 2023, former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said: “He’s with us in training again, special boy. Really confident, has something nobody else delivers. This kind of dribbling, this kind of straightforward bravery, all these kind of things. Technically really good, high speed, super-promising.”