Crystal Palace dealt injury blow but club captain could benefit.
Crystal Palace were dealt a blow today, with midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek missing training as a consequence of the back injury that he suffered while on international duty with England.
Loftus-Cheek made quite an impact during the international break as he produced a man-of-the-match performance in the goalless draw against Germany before featuring against Brazil, although he had to be substituted in the latter fixture with injury.
It appears that Loftus-Cheek is in danger of missing the Premier League game at home to Everton on Saturday as the youngster was unable to participate in training, as reported by Sky Sports.
While the news is undoubtedly a major setback for Palace going into a game against another struggling side, Loftus-Cheek’s absence could open the door for Jason Puncheon to return to the starting line-up.
Despite being club captain, Puncheon has been on the periphery of proceedings of late and the 31-year-old has been an unused substitute in each of Palace’s last three Premier League games.
Puncheon has often been deployed as a central midfielder on the occasions that he has featured but he has spent the majority of his career playing on the right flank and could be deployed in that position if Loftus-Cheek, as expected, is ruled out against Everton.
With Palace bottom of the table and in need of inspiration, Puncheon, with his direct approach and ability to make a major impact in front of goal, could prove to be the hero that Roy Hodgson’s team are looking for.
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