Michael Olise has five goals in nine games so far this season (Photo: Getty)
Roy Hodgson has confirmed that Michael Olise has suffered another hamstring injury and does not know when the Crystal Palace star will be back.
Olise pulled up at the very end of Palace’s 3-1 win over Brentford last week and could be seen holding his leg in some discomfort.
The Eagles kick-off the third-round of the FA Cup on Thursday night against Everton, but the highly-rated winger will not be involved, with Hodgson saying in his pre-match press conference: ‘Unfortunately for us, he won’t take part in this game.
‘We’ll have to nurse him through and hope he gets back as soon as possible. For how long is he out? I can’t answer that one I’m afraid.
‘It [his character] is good. We’re hoping that this one is going to be nothing like the one that put him out the game for as near as six months. We don’t think or hope it’s going to be like that.
‘It is another little setback that I’m sure he and we would not have liked. After his last two performances, which were so good, we were hoping he’d be stepping out tomorrow and treating us again to another great exhibition of football.
‘He’s a bit upset that that can’t happen and as are we, but let’s not put too much of a dampener on what’s going to happen going forward. There’s plenty of games left to play in this season, we’ve got another 18 league matches to play, and we’re hoping he’s going to be there to help us.’
Olise has arguably been Palace’s best player this season, bagging five goals and one assist in just nine games, form that has been attracting interest from around the Premier League, with Manchester United poised to make a move for him in the summer.
The 22-year-old came close to joining Chelsea last summer but at the eleventh hour he penned a new four-year contract with the South Londoners.
He scored twice in the victory over Brentford – a much needed win for the club who have slipped into the relegation fight, and his absence will be of grave concern to fans, especially with tricky games against Arsenal, Brighton and Chelsea on the horizon.
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‘Olise’s performance, even against Chelsea in the game before, was the type of performance you, even as a coach of great experience, you’d happily pay great money to watch,’ Hodgson added.
‘We were delighted with him and for him in that game, and even sadder he’s going to face a period on the sidelines. We hope that period won’t be for too long.
‘There’s no doubt that all teams, whether they’re fighting to win the league or fighting to stay in the league, need their best players.’
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