Palace overcome ‘the most reckless challenge’ – and stupid BBC decision – as Nketiah takes Mateta chance

The BBC seemed to expect Steve Parish to react differently at seeing Jean-Philippe Mateta stretchered off into an ambulance. Crystal Palace made it through.

“In all the time I’ve watched football, I’ve never seen a challenge like it,” said Steve Parish. “That is the most reckless challenge on a football pitch I think I’ve ever seen.”

It was a curious decision from the BBC to actively seek out an interview with an evidently and understandably sensitive club chairman, not least because they seemed to expect a different, more neutral reaction to seeing an employee and friend stretchered off and taken into an ambulance after being kicked in the actual head.

Parish inevitably spun any and all questions back around to Jean-Philippe Mateta – “it’s difficult for me to think about anything else at the moment with JP in hospital” – and that atrocious tackle despite the increasing desperation of the interviewer to squeeze out some far more banal half-time quotes on Crystal Palace’s chances of winning a wide-open FA Cup. When the cameras then cut back to the studio to nervous laughter from presenter Alex Scott and the punditry team, the reality of the naivety of giving a clearly emotional Parish that platform had long since dawned.

It was uncomfortable viewing, as was any replay of Liam Roberts planting his studs into the side of Mateta’s face, or a loud portion of the travelling Millwall support chanting “let him die” while he received extensive treatment. If this was the magic of the FA Cup it can stay lost. And that goes for the Palace fans who mockingly sang the same when Camiel Neghli’s evidently less serious later injury was being tended to.

From an unthinkably difficult situation, Palace salvaged a place in the quarter-final which might feel unimportant while Mateta’s condition is unknown, but it reflects another step in an understatedly impressive season.

A side which did not win any of their opening eight Premier League games, and only one of their first 13, is completely safe from relegation and in the last eight of a competition in which most if not all of the other teams remaining have priorities which lie elsewhere. The Alan Pardew Wembley dance demons could be exorcised soon.

This has all been achieved against a backdrop of adversity: Michael Olise and Joachim Andersen were sold in the summer, with Marc Guehi notably distracted for some time after the collapse of his own move; Adam Wharton has barely been available due to injury; Trevoh Chalobah was recalled from his loan by Chelsea in January. Yet Palace continue to improve and prosper and across Europe’s top ten leagues, only PSG have won more of their last ten games in all competitions than the Eagles.

Eddie Nketiah, sent on in deeply undesirable circumstances, was excellent and Millwall struggled to handle either his movement or ability to fashion a shot out of nothing. It is, again, far from the most important factor at hand but he will have to step up in Mateta’s absence and recent performances suggest he can.

Will Hughes conducted matters from deep and had a hand in the first two goals, with his floated deliveries into the area causing havoc. A man light and playing away at a Premier League ground, perhaps the individual errors intertwined with Millwall falling 2-0 down were unavoidable.

But their response was spirited, Wes Harding halving the deficit just before half-time through a deflection off Ben Chilwell, then admiring the electricity of Femi Azeez from afar.

Millwall had opportunities to equalise as Palace became slightly more frantic in their defending from the start of the second half, the visitors having four shots to one from about a quarter of the possession up until the 80th minute. Then an expertly-taken Nketiah header ended all hope as the hosts took control.

It is a victory Palace will not feel like celebrating too much just yet, both because of Mateta’s injury and their having been knocked out in the quarter-final and semi-final of the FA Cup since losing the final nine years ago, all under different managers.

But the brilliance of Oliver Glasner gives them a chance in any game and hope remains he can repeat his Europa League final win with Frankfurt to deliver silverware to Selhurst Park. Only a fool would bet against it on current form.

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