Jefferson Lerma to join Crystal Palace on free transfer

Jefferson Lerma is poised to join Crystal Palace on a free transfer from Bournemouth.

The Colombia international is out of contract at the end of the season and the Dorset club have been unable to convince him to agree new terms.

Palace are keen to bolster their midfield, having confirmed last week that long-serving Luka Milivojevic and James McArthur will both leave the club this summer on free transfers.

Lerma was Bournemouth’s record signing when he joined from Spanish club Levante in 2018 for £25million and was named the club’s player of the year by supporters last week.

This season has been his most prolific in front of goal for Bournemouth — Lerma has five goals in 36 games — and he played a key role in the club securing their Premier League status for another year.

The 28-year-old — who has 33 caps for Colombia — played against Palace at Selhurst Park earlier this month and had his nose broken by Joachim Andersen, who avoided a red card after a VAR review.

Palace are facing an uncertain summer. Roy Hodgson’s spell as interim manager comes to an end on Sunday, when Palace play their final game of the season at home to Nottingham Forest, and he said on Friday that he was not expecting to return next term – although that scenario has far from been ruled out.

Hodgson said: “I signed a contract until the end of the season here, I was very happy to do so, I’m grateful to be given the opportunity. All along I have seen this as my last game on my contract, as far as I am concerned that is what it is.

“What’s on the table for me at the moment is to see my contract out, thank everyone for the wonderful time I’ve had these last two and a half months and hopefully help the team to get a result in their last game like we’ve been able to do in the last nine.”

There are also question marks over the future of star player Wilfried Zaha, who is a free agent this summer and is yet to reveal whether he intends to sign the £200,000-a-week contract he has been offered by Palace.

(Photo: Getty Images)