Crystal Palace are keeping tabs on Sunderland starlet Chris Rigg and believe the 17-year-old is ready for the Premier League, The Sun journalist Matt Hughes has reported.

The exciting midfielder has been a regular for the Black Cats this season after becoming the second-youngest player in their history, and has now appeared on Palace’s radar.

According to Hughes, the Eagles have watched Rigg play for Sunderland several times this season, and their sporting director, Dougie Freedman, is impressed with his talent.

Rigg, labelled ‘the best young English player since Jude Bellingham’, has impressed for the Championship heavyweights this term, netting three goals in his 13 league appearances and amassing close to 1,000 minutes of action already.

Alongside Jobe Bellingham and Eliezer Mayenda, the 17-year-old is considered to be one of Sunderland’s finest prospects in the first-team squad and now seems to have caught the attention of Palace.

According to Hughes, Palace could make a move for Rigg as early as January – in what would be another winter coup from the second-tier for the Eagles, having signed Adam Wharton from Blackburn nearly 10 months ago.

Sunderland, however, will be in a strong negotiating position at the turn of the year, having secured Rigg’s services with a new three-year deal just last summer, and will be unwilling to sell him mid-season.

Crystal Palace may well be looking to bolster their squad with new arrivals in January, after business in the summer transfer window has yet to yield any substantial results in the Premier League.

Moreover, the Eagles’ marquee summer signing Eddie Nketiah is now a point of concern within the club, having picked up a hamstring injury, with no definitive timeline for his return as of yet.

Having collected four points from their last six available, Oliver Glasner’s men will be hoping to maintain their positive run of results when they welcome Fulham at home in their final test before the international break.