Crystal Palace's potential new record signing Dwight Gayle can be as good for the Eagles as Henrik Larsson was for Celtic - according to the man who discovered him.

Gayle is set to complete a move from Peterborough United to the Eagles this week for a fee that will rise to a rumoured £6m with add-ons - surpassing the previous record Palace spend of £2.65m on Valerian Ismael in 1998.

It is a remarkable rise to prominence for 22-year-old Gayle, who a little over 24 months ago was playing for Stansted in the Essex Senior League, before moving to Dagenham & Redbridge, going on loan to Bishop's Stortford, and then joining Posh last November.

But four years ago it was a very different story for Gayle, who had been released by Arsenal for being too small and had fallen out of love with the sport.

He was working as a carpenter and playing football with his mates in the park before Stansted and their then manager Terry Spillane came calling.

"He wasn't playing at all and had fallen out of love with the game really," said Spillane, now manager at Maldon & Tiptree.

"But he was a good friend of my son Tommy and Tommy brought him along for training. He already knew a majority of the boys I had then and it gave him the love back for the game.

"When he first came he wasn't interested, he was just coming along for a kick about and it took him a while before he played.

"He didn't want to have the commitment to play each week but the more he came the more he began to enjoy it again.

"He scored a lot of goals for us and we won the league and even then Peterborough were looking at him - he was unplayable most of the time.

"It's crazy really. I was speaking to him at the weekend - he is a good kid and keeps in contact with me, he is not big time or anything like that, he has his feet on the ground.

"We were talking about how 24 months ago he was playing at places like Basildon United and now he is going to be playing at Old Trafford in front of so many people.

"He has taken his chance over the past two years and got his reward.

"I think he will do really well next year.

"I am a Celtic fan and I would liken him to Henrik Larsson - not a bad player to be compared with but that is who he reminds me of.

"He is not the biggest but he has a leap on him, is two-footed and runs the channels.

"He has got the whole package and is willing to work hard, he will score goals."

Dwight Gayle's football factfile:

2002: Released by Arsenal aged 12 for being too small.

2009: Was working as a carpenter and playing football with friends on a Saturday afternoon before joined Stansted in the Essex Senior League.

2010-2011: Scores 57 goals as he helps Stansted to the Essex Senior League title and wins the Golden Boot.

2011-2012: Signs for Dagenham & Redbridge and then goes to Blue Square North side Bishop's Stortford for a season-long loan, scoring 42 goals.

August 2012: Signs a new three-year deal with Dagenham & Redbridge and scores seven goals in 20 appearances in League Two.

November 2012 - May 2013: Joins Championship club Peterborough United on loan and then permanently for £400,000 after scoring seven goals in a six-match streak. He ends the season with a total of 20 goals in 49 games.