Tom Carroll a potential loan target for Crystal Palace

Know how the Hoddle said 'Tom Carroll or we riot' this morning? Well, if he doesn't play against Dinamo Tbilisi, it could be because he's headed out on loan. Crystal Palace are in need of a passing midfielder and they think that Tom Carroll could be a solution to their woes, according to Neil Ashton at The Daily Mail. Ashton also says that Barry Bannan of Aston Villa is a target for them to fill the same role.

Here's the important part of the piece:

England Under 21 star Carroll is highly-rated by the staff at Spurs who believe he will be a first-team regular by next year. The club are keen for him gain as much experience as possible in the top flight and can do this at the south London club. Spurs would only allow Carroll to leave on a season-long loan.

It's tough to know how much truth there is to that, but it's encouraging that someone reasonably well-informed (while Ashton gets plenty wrong, he seems more plugged-in than most journos) thinks that Spurs really rate Carroll. It's a running meme at the site that Carroll is the cure to all that ails Spurs and that he's a bit overrated by the staff here, but our opinions are based on facts and I won't have any dissent. Tom Carroll rules. You stink.

Anyway, Holloway's teams have played pretty nice football in the past, even if they kind of parked the bus against Spurs in the first game of the season. I'd be perfectly okay with Carroll going to Palace on loan this season. He wouldn't be stuck playing some terribly putrid style that would lead to him having to unlearn things to assimilate back into our first team and he'd probably get plenty of chances to play.