Patrick Vieira identifies two players to replace Gallagher amid huge interest in midfielder

The future of Conor Gallagher is still up in the air but Crystal Palace are already making big plans for next season without having to risk the disappointment of losing the star player.

Patrick Vieira has quietly decided on the next two midfielders who could make up for the potential loss of the midfielder in both the energy he brings to the team, and his goals and assists.

Gallagher fired in eight goals and three assists as the Eagles finished an impressive 12th on the league table, just a point behind their Premier League all-time best point tally of 49.

Crystal Palace are back in pre-season on Monday with most of the squad expected to return to the training base in Beckenham for the first week before they fly out to Austria.

And the coming weeks will reveal a clear picture of Gallagher’s state of mind.

Everton have thrown money at him and are expected to rival the south London side in every bid they make.

While there is still a chance that he could yet get his chance at Chelsea, with Ngolo Kante not getting any younger.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek could also decide to go elsewhere for more playing time which could also open the door for Conor, so Palace are not wrapping their entire season around the promising midfielder.

One of the Palace players that Vieira is looking to get the goals that will make up for the loss of Gallagher is Eberechi Eze.

The midfielder showed signs of getting back to his very best at the end of last season and when Eze is on form he is either creating or scoring goals.

If his form in the last few games of the season is anything to go by he is scoring more goals than he did last season.

Another player that is expected to bring energy is Tottenham’s Harry Winks.

The experienced English international has also been linked with Everton - but if Conor decides to go to Everton then Palace would definitely be top of his list.

Despite Wink’s recent slump, he is still a very good midfielder and can make the difference in the right environment.

Vieira is still optimistic that he would be told when Conor makes up his mind but did tell reporters that everything was out of his hands at the moment.

The Palace boss is quoted by Football365: “It’s up to Chelsea and of course the player.”

The south London side have agreed a deal to bring in goalkeeper Sam Johnstone and have also won the race to sign Derby’s Malcolm Ebiowei.