Anan Khalaily Becomes Israel's Most Expensive Footballer with Crystal Palace Transfer

Anan Khalaily officially became the most expensive Israeli footballer ever after his transfer from Union Saint-Gilloise to Crystal Palace for approximately 28 million euros. The 21-year-old midfielder and winger, who previously failed medical tests at Inter Milan, is now set to compete in the English Premier League, widely regarded as the best league in the world. This transfer surpasses the previous Israeli record held by Munas Dabbur, who moved from Salzburg to Sevilla for 17 million euros in the 2019/2020 season.

Khalaily also broke Union Saint-Gilloise's club transfer record, which was set just last summer when they sold Croatian striker Franjo Ivanović to Benfica for 23 million euros. His move to Crystal Palace marks the club's seventh most expensive signing in history. Khalaily, who developed at Maccabi Haifa, first gained international attention after excelling with Israel's under-20 national team at the 2023 U-20 World Cup before transferring to Belgium for about 6.5 million euros. Maccabi Haifa, having retained a future sale percentage, will receive around 4 million euros from this deal.

Crystal Palace finished 15th in the English Premier League last season but won the UEFA Conference League, securing a spot in the UEFA Europa League group stage for the upcoming season. Khalaily joins a squad aiming not only for European success but also to climb the Premier League standings.