Several of you have been getting in touch using our ‘Ask about Crystal Palace’ form‘ wanting to know more about Yeremy Pino’s impact since joining the Eagles this summer.
Pino’s signing was considered a coup for Crystal Palace back in August. After all, the 23-year-old is a squad regular for Spain and was a key part of the Villarreal side that earned Champions League qualification last season.
His arrival for a fee of up to £26m softened the blow of losing Eberechi Eze, who registered 34 goals and 23 assists in 147 league games before departing to Arsenal.
But while Pino has taken Eze’s place, he has yet to reproduce the Englishman’s end product, failing to score or assist in his first nine Premier League appearances.
Pino has attempted 12 top-flight shots but half of those have been from outside the box and only three have been on target. His overall expected goals total is 1.39, and while that is the third highest by a Palace player, it is a long way off Jean-Philippe Mateta (8.08) and Ismaila Sarr (3.72), who are shouldering the lion’s share of the goalscoring burden.
Though tidy and nimble in possession, as would be expected from a player with 17 Spanish caps, Pino is not making his presence felt in the penalty area. He only has 19 touches in the opposition box, just one more than Eagles centre-back Marc Guehi.
However, it is worth recalling that Eze also started slowly after joining from QPR in 2020, scoring once in his first 14 league appearances. And while he only moved a few miles across London, Pino has had to adapt to a new country, a new language – and a new tactical role.
