Eagles To Pounce For Yeates?

Colchester United midfielder Mark Yeates has once again been linked with a move to Crystal Palace this summer.

Reports in various national newspapers over the weekend suggest that the Eagles are leading the chase for Yeates' signature. A few weeks ago Vital Colchester reported that Championship new-boys Nottingham Forest are also keen. A fee of around £750,000 has been mentioned.

The Dublin born fans' favourite joined Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur in 2002, before making his debut for Spurs he was loaned out to Brighton and Swindon. Yeates made his Spurs debut against Wolves on the final day of the 2003-04 season, setting up a goal for countrymen Robbie Keane. This was one of only three appearances he managed for the White Hart Lane club.

At the beginning of the 2005/6 season then U's boss Phil Parkinson signed Yeates on a season-long loan, a capture that would prove vital as the U's ended the campaign with promotion. Yeates turned out 44 times for the U's, scoring 5 goals in a record-breaking season.

Prior to the start of the 2006-07 season Yeates put pen to paper on a new two-year deal at White Hart Lane. In a frustrating season, the Irishmen was loaned out to Hull and Leicester but failed to make an impact.

On the 3rd July 2007 Yeates joined the U's permanently for an undisclosed six-figure sum. He started his second spell with the U's in great form, scoring 5 free-kicks in the opening months of the season. But the goals dried up and the 23-year-old dislocated his shoulder, for the second time in his career, against Sheffield United on the 2nd February, an injury that ruled him out for the rest of the campaign.