Patrick Vieira bemoans FA rule which will stop ‘fantastic’ Conor Gallagher facing parent club Chelsea in next week’s FA Cup semi-final… with the Crystal Palace boss claiming it is ‘frustrating for his development’
- Conor Gallagher will not be part of Crystal Palace’s FA Cup semi-final squad
- His parent club Chelsea refused permission for the midfielder to play in the tie
- Eagles boss Patrick Vieira bemoans the FA rule that is frustrating for Gallagher
Conor Gallagher will not be part of Crystal Palace’s FA Cup semi final squad after parent club Chelsea refused permission for the on-loan midfielder to play at Wembley.
Palace manager Patrick Vieira retained ‘slim’ hope that the 22-year-old would be able to feature but Chelsea have ruled out his participation in next Sunday’s match.
Gallagher has played an instrumental role in helping Palace reach the last four but as soon as the draw was made, the midfielder was already resigned to missing out.
Conor Gallagher (pictured) will not be part of Crystal Palace’s FA Cup semi final squad
Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira retained ‘slim’ hope that the 22-year-old would be able to feature but Chelsea have ruled out his participation
‘He was of course affected by that [the semi-final draw] because he knew straight away that he wasn’t going to have the chance to be involved,’ Vieira explained.
‘We feel for him. He put his head back into training straightaway but it will be more different when we get to the week of preparing for that game because, of course, this week we’ve been preparing for the Leicester game.
‘It will be challenging for him to look at the team, preparing himself but not being involved. That will be challenging for him.’
Vieira has questioned whether the FA and the Premier League are hindering the development of young players by not allowing them to face parent clubs.
Vieira (pictured) has questioned whether the FA and the Premier League are hindering the development of young players by not allowing them to face their parent clubs
‘I don’t know if it’s a bad rule but what makes me think it’s not the best rule is that the only one who will lose is Conor,’ he added.
‘This is a semi-final, it’s a really exciting game about how you will manage yourself and prepare yourself during the week to prepare the game.
‘Playing this kind of game with this importance, that’s the experience that players are missing and I’m disappointed for him because he’s played all of the games so far.
‘If someone deserves to be part of the semi-final it’s him because of his performances.
Vieira believes the decision for Chelsea to send Gallagher on loan is for him to play big games
‘The decision for Chelsea to send him on loan is for him to play these kind of games and we have the opportunity to play an important game, a game that would give him more confidence and belief.
‘Since he’s been with us he’s been fantastic and for him not to have a chance to get involved in that game, it’s frustrating for his development.’
Gallagher must put the disappointment of missing out at Wembley behind him, as he will be at the heart of the Palace midfield looking to continue their excellent recent run against Leicester on Sunday.
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