Crystal Palace boss Patrick Vieira claims this week he is disappointed Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher will not be allowed to play in the FA Cup semi-finals this Sunday.
Chelsea turned down Palace’s request to play Gallagher against them this weekend because he is on loan from Chelsea. Now Vieira may be stunned by this, but the reality is, would he allow it if the shoe was on the other foot? I can tell you 100% now, no, he wouldn’t.
Gallagher is a Chelsea player so why on earth should we allow him to play us and risk him potentially playing a big part in knocking us out of the FA Cup? It’s just not realistic and unfortunately Patrick, that’s how loaners work. They’re not YOUR players, they’re on LOAN, it’s really that simple.
Patrick Vieira: “It’s an experience that the player lacks and I’m disappointed for him.
“If there’s anyone who deserves to be in the semi-finals, it’s him because of his performances.”
“Chelsea’s decision to loan him out is to play these kinds of games.” https://t.co/5W1e0rrSXJ
— Nizaar Kinsella (@NizaarKinsella) April 10, 2022
Of course, it would be a nice opportunity for Gallagher to play in the FA Cup semi-finals. But don’t worry Patrick, Conor will get LOTS of opportunities to play in the FA Cup, the Champions League and all the other top competitions he’s lined up for at Chelsea in the coming seasons, so he’ll definitely get it his moments.
Gallagher is a big part of Chelsea’s future and he has proven that this season. I’m grateful to Vieira and Palace for playing against him and helping to develop a great player. But unfortunately the biscuit in this business literally crumbles.
He’s a Chelsea player first and that just has to come first. There’s no way I would let him play against us, he has the ability to really damage us and at the end of the day we’re trying to win a trophy here!
