Crystal Palace are one of a quartet of clubs exploring the possibility of securing the former Arsenal midfielder Mathieu Flamini as the Frenchman seeks a new club following his release from the Emirates Stadium in June.

Flamini, who made 246 appearances over his two spells at Arsenal, and his representative have spoken to Palace, Roma, Olympiakos and another of the Frenchman’s former clubs, Milan, over a potential full-time contract and is currently weighing up his options. Alan Pardew had made clear his desire to secure a replacement for the departed Mile Jedinak before Wednesday’s transfer deadline, only for moves for Jack Wilshere, James McCarthy and Tomás Rincón to be scuppered at the last.

Arsenal favoured Bournemouth’s loan bid for Wilshere given the south coast club’s willingness to cover the player’s entire wage package and pay a £2m loan fee, while Palace’s hopes of securing McCarthy fizzled out once Newcastle’s Moussa Sissoko chose to join Tottenham Hotspur rather than Everton. Rincón, the Venezuela captain, was a third option only for talks with his club, Genoa, to flounder over a fee. Late enquiries as to the potential availability of Jonjo Shelvey at Newcastle and Dale Stephens at Brighton also came to nothing.

Flamini made 24 appearances for Arsenal last term, the last of which came in a 3-1 Champions League knockout defeat against Barcelona at Camp Nou in March, and had been expected to join the Turkish club, Caykur Rizespor, earlier in the summer. Yet the 32-year-old would offer Palace another experienced body in midfield as Pardew seeks to evolve his team’s style of play. The south London club submitted a 24-man squad list to the Premier League on Thursday, leaving them one slot which could be filled by a free agent if terms can be agreed.