Crystal Palace made a late attempt to sign Lyon’s Ruben Kluivert in the winter market.
On February 2nd, Sport Witness covered claims from France of Crystal Palace’s deadline day attempt to sign the defender. The source reported the Eagles held talks with Lyon and were keen on bringing him to Selhurst Park.
Later that day, Sport Witness relayed news that Lyon quickly shot down the London club’s late approach for the 24-year-old. That’s because they had no plans to sanction a sale midway through the season.
The Ligue 1 side were against the centre-back’s exit from both a sporting and financial point of view.
There was no mention of the Dutchman’s stance on Crystal Palace’s interest and Lyon rejecting their advances. That was until he gave an interview to Le Progrès and Ouest-France have relayed his comments.
Ruben Kluivert confused with Crystal Palace approach
The defender spent his career in the Netherlands until Casa Pisa signed him in June 2024. He played 24 matches for the Portuguese club, and that was enough to convince Lyon, who signed him in July 2025.
Kluivert has operated mainly as a centre-back and at times as both left and right-back for the French club, playing 1,267 minutes from 19 matches. He has a contract until 2030.
Lyon’s decision not to entertain Crystal Palace’s attempt has pleased the player. He also talks about his Premier League dream but insists he has no plans to leave in the near future.
Relief Lyon didn’t encourage Oliver Glasner’s side
“It was confusing, because it was very late in the day. I’m happy to be here, 100% committed to this project in Lyon. We’re still in the Europa League and the Coupe de France, we have a lot of games to play with a really superb squad, and I’m convinced we can go far in all these competitions,” he said.
“For these reasons, I would say that the club did the right thing in keeping me. Personally, I can’t deny that the Premier League remains a dream. But if I had to choose, I prefer the way things turned out. The club made the right choice.
“I signed a five-year contract with Lyon, and I see myself staying for at least another two or three years. The fact that they wanted to keep me here was a relief.”