Crystal Palace have suffered a huge injury setback ahead of their opening Premier League fixture of the season against Arsenal tonight.
What’s the latest?
That’s according to reports by London World, who spoke to Patrick Vieira about the availability of some of his players.
The Eagles manager confirmed that Michael Olise would miss the clash against the Gunners after suffering a foot injury whilst away with the France under-21s. Having also missed pre-season due to that complaint, there is cause to believe that it is not just tonight’s fixture that the 20-year-old will miss.
Vieira was quoted as saying: “Yes, it’s the same foot injury he picked up with the French U21 team, but he has started working with the team today so he is getting there and he is looking much better now.
“We have a plan in place, and it is important for him to have a proper pre-season. We’re not going to rush him, we’re going to work properly because it is an important season for him, and it is an important season for us.”
Vieira will be gutted
Since his move from Reading last summer, Olise has impressed with his speed and trickery, gliding past defenders and getting supporters at Selhurst Park off their seats. He featured 26 times in the Premier League last season for the Eagles, scoring twice and setting a further five goals to mark an impressive debut top-flight campaign for the 20-year-old.
Who can replace Michael Olise for today’s fixture?
Eberechi Eze
Malcolm Ebiowei
Wilfried Zaha
A 6.91 average SofaScore rating is also impressive given his youth and inexperience at this level. He ranked seventh amongst his Palace teammates in 2021/22 from the statistical website, further outlining his importance to Vieira’s side.
However, the lack of a pre-season for Olise could frustrate the manager, who not only will have to wait for the injury to heal but will then have to get the youngster up to match fitness.
Branded “phenomenal” by journalist Ryan Taylor, the 20-year-old’s absence can be somewhat mitigated by the return of Eberechi Eze, who missed large parts of last season due to a ruptured Achilles.
Although that may soften the blow regarding Olise, Vieira will still remain gutted that one of his breakthrough stars of last season seems set to miss the start of the new campaign. The French youngster could have been instrumental to Palace’s hopes of to snatching victory over the Gunners.
