Yeremy Pino joins Crystal Palace from Villarreal as Eze replacement

LONDON (AP) — Crystal Palace signed Spain forward Yeremy Pino from Villarreal on Friday as a direct replacement for Eberechi Eze.

Originally from Spain’s Canary Islands, the 22-year-old Pino came up through Villarreal’s youth academy and was quickly seen as one of its top talents.

The fast and incisive forward helped Villarreal win the 2021 Europa League title. He also played for Spain when the country won the Nations League in 2023.

There was a vacancy in Palace's front three after Eze joined Arsenal last week and Pino has signed a five-year deal ahead of potentially making his debut at Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday.

“I’m very happy to be here. It is a dream of mine to come to the Premier League, to a historic club like Crystal Palace, and I hope that I can help the team," Pino said.

Palace chairman Steve Parish described Pino as “an exciting young talent, with already such an impressive record in domestic, European and international football.”

Palace will play in the Conference League this season after winning the FA Cup for its first ever major trophy.

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