England face fight for Olise
MICHAEL OLISE’S electric form for Crystal Palace is set to spark a four-way battle for his services on the international stage.
And this month is crunch time for a player storming the Premier League this season.
France and England will name their provisional squads for this summer’s European Championships in the next 10 days – and discussions in the run-up to those announcements could decide Olise’s international future once and for all.
Born in Hammersmith to a Nigerian father and a French-Algerian mother, Olise is currently eligible to play for England, France, Nigeria and Algeria.
He played for France in last summer’s Under-21s European Championships.
But he’s yet to make a final decision on where his senior future lies.
And his outstanding performances for Crystal Palace – one of Three
Lions manager Gareth Southgate’s former clubs – won’t have gone unnoticed by England.
His Eagles form will also have had the France manager, Didier Deschamps, salivating.
“I think he’s got an international career in front of him, but it’ll be up to him which country he wants to play for,” said Roy Hodgson, his former manager at Palace, earlier this season after Olise had reeled off a series of stunning displays.
His brother, Richard Olise, 19, who is part of the Chelsea youth set-up has represented England at Under-18s level.
Olise, 22, is yet to commit his long-term future to the French – and with Algeria and Nigeria also waiting in the wings, he certainly isn’t going to be short of options.