Crystal Palace Signs Versatile Young Talent Khalaili for £21m

Crystal Palace have landed one of Europe’s more intriguing young attackers, sealing a deal for Israel international Khalaili from Union Saint-Gilloise for a reported £21m on a contract that runs until 2031.

At 21, he arrives in south London with a reputation for versatility and a habit of winning. Capped 16 times by Israel, he can operate as a full-back or higher up as a winger, offering Palace head coach Sage a flexible option on either flank.

Khalaili first burst onto the scene at Maccabi Haifa, where he scored 15 goals in 52 appearances and helped the club lift the 2023 Super Cup. That early surge carried him to Belgium, and his impact there was immediate. With Union Saint-Gilloise, he played his part in ending a 90-year wait for a league title in the 2024-25 season, then followed it by winning the Belgian Cup last term. Two seasons, two trophies, two different competitions. His CV already reads like that of a far older player.

Now comes the jump he has been eyeing for years.

“I have followed the Premier League for a long time, it's a new challenge for me,” he told the club’s official website after completing his move to the English top flight. There was no sense of intimidation in his words, only anticipation.

He spoke just as warmly about his new home at Selhurst Park. “And Crystal Palace I like, because I have followed them for a long time. They have deserved to win three trophies and I want to do more.” The ambition is clear: he has not come simply to develop; he has come to add to a growing sense of purpose around the club.

This signing fits neatly into that wider plan. Palace’s hierarchy have been piecing together a calculated rebuild, one aimed at giving Sage depth and balance across the pitch rather than chasing headline names for the sake of it. Khalaili becomes the club’s fifth arrival of the summer, and arguably the most symbolically important: a young, title-tested player committing his prime years to Selhurst Park.

The defensive base has already been reinforced with the free-transfer additions of Oscar Mingueza and Takehiro Tomiyasu, two signings that add composure and versatility at the back. Higher up the pitch, the attack has been reshaped. Dwight McNeil has come in as part of a swap deal that saw Brennan Johnson depart, bringing a different profile out wide, while Evann Guessand has returned on a season-long loan from Aston Villa to deepen the forward options.

Layer by layer, Palace are building something more robust, more adaptable. Khalaili slots into that picture as a player who can change games from several positions, one who already knows what it takes to push a team over the line in a title race and a cup final.

Now the question is simple: how far can this new-look Palace go with a serial winner in the making running the touchline at Selhurst Park?