With the news of Crystal Palace signing Reading youngster Michael Olise for £8m, we asked Simeon from The Tilehurst End to give us the lowdown on what to expect from the 19-year-old.
Hey Simeon. Thanks for answering these questions! What kind of player have Palace signed in Michael Olise?
A magnificent talent that I miss already, and one that’s destined for the top of the game.
He’s certainly best deployed as a number 10, where he can be at the heart of attacking moves while still retaining the flexibility to move around the pitch to pick up the ball. He’s also an adept winger though, having spent a big chunk of last season on the right of our 4-2-3-1, drifting inside to good effect.
He’s impressively versatile though. In his Reading career I’ve seen him line up as a more conventional winger on either side, as a 10, as a false nine and even as a deeper playmaker in central midfield. However, Palace would be wise to play him as a 10 and stick with that, letting him blossom in the spot where his potential can shine through.
I’ve tried to work out previously what his stand-out trait is. To be honest, he’s got so many qualities that focusing on just one of them would be unfair; he’s impressively well rounded for a 19 year-old. Olise’s close control and dribbling are sublime - allowing him to weave past defenders with apparent ease, his vision is excellent, he can pick out intelligent passes over any range, and he’s even got a great set piece and shot in him too.
If you’re unsure about his ability, just have a look at two of his assists from last season: a dinked ball over the top for Lucas Joao at Millwall, and a perfectly weighted through ball to play in Yakou Meite at home to Bristol City. He was an absolute delight to watch and I’m sure Palace fans will feel the same.
It seems Reading fans are generally disappointed about the fee - is £8m a fair reflection of his value?
Not in the slightest, but in the end we had no choice. There had been speculation since late last year over an apparent £8m release clause in his contract, which he signed in the summer of 2019 after a few appearances, and that clause turned out to be genuine. In all honesty I’m surprised no one activated it midway through last season - assuming it was active then.
Take out that release clause, and the fact that his deal with Reading was due to run out next summer anyway, and Olise is by no means an £8m player. Considering Jude Bellingham went to Borussia Dortmund for north of £20m, we could have reasonably asked for a similar amount - based on his output last season and huge potential to develop.
From Palace’s point of view, £8m is a bargain. I expect Olise’s ceiling is Champions League level, and to be honest he could well have gone straight there this summer and been developed at an elite European club. In all likelihood you’ll make a hefty profit in a couple of years - assuming Olise continues on the trajectory he’s on.
How do you see him fitting in in the Premier League? Is he ready to play at this level?
I imagine he’ll take some getting used to the Premier League. At the end of the day he’s still a young lad, so showing consistency in the top flight straight away would be a surprise.
He’s already shown that he can adapt though. It took a while for Olise to be given consistent league appearances in 2019/20 - the season after his debut. Then-manager Mark Bowen explained Olise’s lack of game time by referring to whether or not he was able to “trust” young players in the first team with regards to their work rate off the ball. Olise was eventually given an opportunity in late January 2020 when he started on the right wing at Nottingham Forest, and repaid the manager’s faith with a defensively solid performance. Bowen told him after the game “I know I can trust you now”, and Olise has been a first-team player ever since.
Olise will need more improvement though if he’s to really cut it in the top flight. I’ll be intrigued to see how much freedom he’s able to play with in a division of such quality, and how he cuts it against high-level defences.
Who would you compare Olise to in style and play?
The name that jumps out for me is Phil Foden. Both are left-footed and slightly built, can line up centrally or out wide, and play with a similar positivity and spark in the final third.
Do you see him and Eberechi Eze fitting into the same team once Eze returns from injury?
Olise is certainly versatile enough to be used in such a way that both players can fit into the same team at the same time, and I’m sure they’d relish linking up with each other. But with Eze cutting in off the left, there may be a danger of both popping up in similar parts of the pitch; that’s not a critical issue but may slightly stifle them.
Plus, given that they’re both relatively young players not long out of the Championship, it would probably be wiser from Palace’s point of view to pick one or the other alongside more experienced personnel. If those players are more quick, direct and willing to get in behind, Olise will have the right options to pick out.
Thanks for your time and good luck next season!