Oliver Glasner says he left Matheus Franca out of the matchday squad for Crystal Palace’s FA Cup semi-final conflict towards Aston Villa as a result of he wished Joel Ward’s expertise on the bench.
The 35-year-old has made simply two appearances this season off the bench however was drafted into the 3-0 win over Villa at Wembley rather than 21-year-old attacker Franca.
Ward has been with the Eagles since 2012 and has performed 363 instances for the South Londoners – taking part in each minute of the FA Cup run which noticed Palace attain the ultimate within the 2015-16 season.
“I wished Joel Ward within the squad as a result of he’s skilled,” stated Glasner.
“He has the expertise of Wembley with Crystal Palace and he’s a frontrunner within the dressing room.
“He deserves to be a part of the squad in these video games. I left him out of the squad for the 2 league video games earlier than.
“I discussed earlier than the semi-final that I needed to make some robust choices.
“You all the time search for steadiness within the workforce. As I informed you earlier than the Southampton recreation, we introduced him [Franca] on as a result of we had a sense he would rating a objective.
“Romain Esse was dissatisfied that I didn’t give him minutes however he has proven the best response since then.
“He trains effectively and is excellent in coaching. I went for Romain and Matheus was neglected.”
PICTURE: KEITH GILLARD
