Crystal Palace strike Ben Chilwell deal with Chelsea to solve Oliver Glasner problem | OneFootball

Former England left-back set for loan switch across London after being frozen out by Enzo Maresca

Ben Chilwell is set to join Crystal Palace on a six-month loan from Chelsea and will undergo his medical on Monday morning.

Chilwell had been training away from the Chelsea first-team squad in recent weeks, mainly with Borussia Dortmund-bound Carney Chukwuemeka. Maresca had said that he did not believe Chilwell suited his preferred formation.

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Palace’s primary target heading into January was 20-year-old El Hadji Malick Diouf of Slavia Prague. But after a £12.5million bid was rejected and further talks stalled, the Eagles decided he was too pricey and pursued other options.

Chilwell, 28, is now set to become Palace’s second new arrival of the winter window, following the signing of winger Romain Esse from Millwall for £12m plus £2.5m in add-ons.

Chilwell, who has 21 caps for England, is seen as being a more accomplished wing-back than full-back so should suit Palace’s 3-4-2-1 system under Glasner.

Chelsea had been actively seeking opportunities for Chilwell to leave the club for more game time this month as they were keen on freeing up his wages on their balance sheet, although he is one of the club's highest earners so the Blues are expected to cover a percentage of his salary while he is at Palace.