He once failed a trial at Crystal Palace, now he’s one of the Premier League’s best players
Crystal Palace are known for poaching young talent and turning them into world-beaters, doing so on numerous occasions.
Adam Wharton, for example, was captured from Blackburn Rovers in February 2024, becoming one of several Championship exports to star in the Premier League.
Palace also signed Eberechi Eze from Queens Park Rangers in June, while Bayern Munich superstar Michael Olise joined the Eagles in July 2021 for just £8million.
The South London club have garnered a reputation for rarely making a mistake in the transfer window; however, one error they committed years ago has come back to haunt them.
Antoine Semenyo once failed a trial at Crystal Palace
At the age of 15, Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo almost gave up on football after failing an eight-week trial at Crystal Palace.
It was one of many rejections the Ghanaian faced early in his career, with Arsenal, Tottenham and Millwall all turning down the chance to sign him.
Speaking about Palace rejecting him, Semenyo told Sky Sports in March 2024: “Palace hit me hard the most because I was there for so long. My trial got extended and I thought I was going to be signed – and it didn’t happen.
“I remember getting into the car crying and saying to my dad, ‘Why does this keep happening?’. I stopped playing football for a year after that. I didn’t play any sport, I put on a lot of weight. I didn’t think I’d be here, but God works in mysterious ways.”
Semenyo used rejection as fuel to prove the doubters wrong, doing so emphatically by becoming one of the Premier League’s best players.
| Premier League’s top scorers |
| Erling Haaland (9) |
| Antoine Semenyo (6) |
| Jaidon Anthony (4) |
| Igor Thiago (4) |
| Hugo Ekitike (3) |
Currently, only Manchester City’s goal machine, Erling Haaland (9) has scored more goals than Semenyo (6), with Palace surely regretting their decision to snub him all those years ago.
How much is Semenyo worth now?
Football Insider understands that Bournemouth could demand more than £100m for Semenyo, with the 25-year-old attracting interest from the likes of Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal.
The Cherries are under no pressure to sell their most invaluable asset after parting ways with Dean Huijsen, Ilya Zabarnyi, Milos Kerkez and Dango Outtara during the summer.
Also, with Bournemouth aiming to gatecrash the European places in 2025/26, keeping Semenyo is crucial and he’s currently happy at the Vitality Stadium.
Jamie Redknapp was recently blown away by Semenyo after his heroics against Fulham, and if he can keep up his stunning form, there’s no reason he can’t fire them into Europe in 2026.