Jake O’Brien set to sign for French giants from Crystal Palace

CORK'S Jake O’Brien is set for a move to French giants Lyons, according to reports in the UK.

The defender is currently with Crystal Palace and he was a staple in Roy Hodgson’s team selection during their preseason preparations.

The Youghal native was originally linked with a seven-figure move to Ligue 2 side Troyes, a team that operates within the City Football Group.

Bristol City, who play in the EFL Championship, were also interested in signing O’Brien at one point during the summer.

Lyon are one of the most successive clubs in the history of France, with their trophy cabinet containing seven league titles.

O’Brien will be working under Laurent Blanc at Lyon, with the coach best known for his playing career with Barcelona and Manchester United.

He was also on the France team that won the World Cup and European Championships in 1998 and 2000.

Blanc took over the club in 2022 and is tasked with getting the most out of a talented squad that contains a host of international stars like Nicolás Tagliafico, Alexandre Lacazette, and Dejan Lovren.

Lyon will not be playing European football this season, but they are still held up as one of the best French teams to play on the continent.

One of their greatest-ever seasons was in 2019-20 as they reached the Champions League semi-finals after knocking out Juventus and Manchester City.

O’Brien will join Lyon after spending a year on loan at RWD Molenbeek in the second tier of the Belgian football pyramid.

The defender was a fan favourite as he helped the club win their league title, and he was named in the Challenger Pro League Team of the Season.

He returned to Selhurst Park and travelled with the first team to the United States for a tour.

O’Brien regularly came off the bench, and he scored a goal during a 2-1 loss to Colombian side Millonarios.

The 22-year-old started out with Youghal United and he went from there to Cork City’s academy. He broke through into the first team during the 2019 season under Neale Fenn and was a regular starter in 2020.

He originally went to Crystal Palace on loan in 2021, and that deal was made permanent after just a few months.

O’Brien’s work was noticed at home as it earned him a call up to the Republic of Ireland U21s.

He was in the squad that made history under Jim Crawford by getting to the European Championships play-off round for the first time.

There was no appearance at an underage international tournament as Israel beat Ireland in a penalty shoot-out in Tel Aviv after a 1-1 aggregate draw over two legs.