The second half of the season has given Crystal Palace fans reason to be excited about the next campaign as they ready themselves to see how much further Roy Hodgson can take their team.

Slow starts, though, are something the Eagles have suffered with time and again. If only they were able to begin and end strongly, maybe then the south London club could break into the top half of the table.

It's a tough ask, especially as they could lose their three most influential players this summer -- Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Wilfried Zaha and Michy Batshuayi.

Whilst the future of loanee Batshuayi is still unclear, Crystal Palace should at least have some back-up options, should a move for him not transpire in the end.

And according to reports from the Sun via HITC earlier this week, that's exactly what the Eagles have been drawing up, registering their interest in free-scoring Duvan Zapata.

Zapata (who is valued at £31.5 million on Transfermarkt) outscored Cristiano Ronaldo in the Serie A this season, which tells the tale of how brilliant the Colombia international has been in front of goal. Although the Eagles will be keen on acquiring Batshuayi on a permanent basis, if worst comes to worst, then Zapata is far from a poor alternative.

In fact, he's anything but.

The 28-year-old is in the form of his life, having scored 27 goals in all competitions for Atalanta. It's safe to say the Eagles could only dream of having a striker within their ranks that is that influential, someone to endear himself to what can be one of the most ferocious cauldrons in English football and improve the mood when it comes to playing at home.

That'd be nice, wouldn't it? The stuff dreams are made of.

He too possesses the skills Batshuayi does, only to a better degree. With phenomenal strength, hold-up play and finishing ability, Zapata is the finished article that could really shake things up at Selhurst Park.

Would you be inclined to sign Duvan Zapata if Batshuayi doesn't sign... Let us know!