Erik Palmer-Brown's latest loan move has been confirmed. The 24-year old will spend the 2021/22 campaign on loan with Troyes in Ligue 1.
The USMNT center back has been shipped around the continent on loan since joining Manchester City's U23 side back in 2018, first joining Belgium's Kortrijk before spending a season in Holland with NAC Breda. He made 18 appearances for the Eredivisie side before moving on to Austria for the the 2019 season with FK Austria Vienna. The Violets liked what they saw in Palmer-Brown and brought him back for another season.
It was in Austria that the defender was able to establish some consistency in terms of playing time, making 55 appearances over his two-year stint with the side. Now, at long last, Palmer-Brown will have an opportunity to ply his trade in one of the top leagues in Europe.
DEAL DONE: Erik Palmer-Brown has joined Troyes on a season-long loan from Manchester City. (Source: @estac_officiel) pic.twitter.com/ycvIuey970
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) August 31, 2021
Erik Palmer-Brown is in town !
Le défenseur international est prêté à l’ESTAC par @ManCity pour la saison 2021/22 !
Bienvenue à Troyes @ErikBrown14 !
Plus d'infos https://t.co/YPfWT7ADTk#mercato #TeamEstac pic.twitter.com/3VMUWOo8pf— ESTAC Troyes (@estac_officiel) August 31, 2021
ESTAC Troyes was purchased by Manchester City's parent company — City Football Group — in Sept. 2020 as the latest addition to a stable of clubs with representation all around the globe, from Australia to India to Spain and more. Troyes, relegated from Ligue 1 in 2018, earned promotion back to the top flight as champions of the second division in 2020/21.
Palmer-Brown, with two national team caps to his name to date, joins a crowded defense with four center backs already on the books. It will be a challenge to establish himself in the side but one that could potentially drive him on to reach new heights on a bigger stage.
It wouldn't be unfair to say that at one point Palmer-Brown was seen as one of the next big things in the USMNT pipeline after his loan move to Porto B in 2016. While he has yet to reach the heights that many thought possible back in those early days, a season in France could be massively beneficial to Palmer-Brown's ongoing development. The defender is certainly one to keep an eye on for USMNT supporters as the season goes on.
