Eze would easily fit in England’s squad
GARETH Southgate will have most of his Euro 2024 squad fixed in his mind but the late-season performances of Adam Wharton and Eberechi Eze might just make the England manager pause for thought.
Along with hat-trick hero JeanPhilippe Mateta, and Michael Olise, who is eligible for England but would prefer to represent France, the Crystal Palace pair ran rings around Aston Villa as Oliver Glasner’s men rounded off the season in style.
Aston Villa will be playing Champions League football next season but it was Mateta, Olise, Wharton and Eze who looked like they would belong at that level. Mateta ended the campaign with 13 goals in as many games and Eze scored twice as Palace finished above bitter rivals Brighton.
It was lucky for Villa they arrived at Selhurst Park with their topfour finish already secure as this was a woeful performance in front of co-owner Nassef Sawiris — their heaviest defeat under Unai Emery. Even allowing for their long injury list, Villa’s early-season form is a distant memory and Emery has work to do in pre-season to reset and refocus his squad. Villa’s priority before June 30 is likely to be player sales to ensure they comply with spending rules — otherwise stars like Olise and Eze would surely be on their radar, along with Wharton.
‘We are very confident we can keep our best players,’ said Eagles manager Glasner. ‘They have contracts here and we have shown them where we want to go. Things can happen in football but if they are sold Crystal Palace would be able to build a new Selhurst Park because it would take a lot of money.’
Wharton, 20, started the season with Blackburn before joining Palace for an initial £14million in January and looks a midfielder of sumptuous class, while Eze is the kind of player who changes a game. Competition for spots in Southgate’s squad is fierce and the England boss is wary of what he calls ‘recency bias’. Yet Southgate likes Eze, who would surely have won more than two England caps had he been luckier with injuries, and Wharton seems impossible to ignore. If Palace can keep their fab four together then perhaps they could surprise the Premier League next season in the way Villa have for most of this campaign.
The away fans arrived in party mood, waving their inflatable European Cups and even cheered when Palace scored their opening two goals. A glum Emery looked angry with team’s display, though he was careful not to criticise it too much. ‘I can’t say anything bad about the players or our work,’ he said. ‘We have achieved the objective we set ourselves at the beginning of the season. It was difficult today but perhaps in the moment, in the circumstances, we can accept it.’ This has still been a fabulous season for Villa but the way they fell apart here — even with nothing to play for — will have unsettled their Spanish boss. Throughout the first half, Olise found space between Villa’s defence and midfield and when Wharton picked him out early on, he slipped in Mateta, who had timed his run perfectly and fired low beyond Robin Olsen.
Olsen was in the team after Emi Martinez was left out of the squad along with Leon Bailey, who was ill. Were it not for Olsen, Palace might have been further clear by half-time — though Villa did come close twice when the score was only 1-0, as Dean Henderson saved from Moussa Diaby and Marc Guehi headed Ollie Watkins effort out from under the bar.
Palace always looked dangerous though and it was no surprise when they doubled their lead. Once more it was the WhartonOlise combination at the heart of the move, as this time Olise released the overlapping Daniel
Munoz and Mateta provided the first-time finish.
Palace made the game safe early in the second half. Chris Richards’ pass took a lucky bounce off Ezri Konsa and fell perfectly for Eze, who hammered it past Olsen from 20 yards and it was not long before Mateta completed his hat-trick. Henderson’s long throw from goal found Eze and he glided past Diego Carlos and found Mateta, who side-stepped Lucas Digne and beat Olsen with ease.
Mateta had a goal ruled out for a tight offside moments before the fifth goal arrived. Eze once more cruised through Villa’s nonexistent midfield, collected Mateta’s return pass and gave Olsen no chance with another crisp strike from range. CRYSTAL PALACE (3-4-2-1): Henderson 6.5; Clyne 7, Andersen 8 (Tomkins 88min), Richards 7 (Lerma 76); Munoz 8, Wharton 8.5 (Riedewald 87), Guehi 7, Mitchell 7; Olise 8.5, Eze 8.5 (Ayew 88); MATETA 9 (Edouard 75, 6). Ozoh. Scorers: Mateta 9, 39, 63, Eze 54, 69. Booked: Andersen. Manager: Oliver Glasner 9. ASTON VILLA (4-5-2): Olsen 5.5; Konsa 5, D Carlos 5.5, Lenglet 4 Digne 4.5; Diaby 5 (Kesler-Hayden 87), Chambers 4 (Iroegbunam 68, 5), D Luiz 5, McGinn 5.5 (Munroe 87); Duran 5, Watkins 6 (Kellyman 69, 6). Booked: McGinn, Digne, D Luiz, Lenglet. Manager: Unai Emery 5. Referee: Darren Bond 6. Attendance: 25,191.