Expert: Crystal Palace have ‘sold their soul to the devil’ amid latest from Singapore
Crystal Palace should not have “sold their soul to the devil” by arranging a lucrative overseas tour if they did not want to have their squad split up because of Covid concerns.
That is the view of medical expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in injury and data analysis.
Palace are currently preparing to take on Liverpool in Singapore on Friday (15 July) on the first leg of their tour.
Patrick Vieira’s side will then fly to Melbourne, Australia where they will face Man United next Tuesday (19 July).
But per the Daily Mail on Tuesday (12 July), the Eagles have just 10 outfield at their disposal as stars such as Wilfried Zaha and Marc Guehi have not met the entry requirements for either country.
The vaccination status of those left at home is unknown.
Dinnery claims that Palace should not have been blinded by the cheque if they had wanted to keep their squad together ahead of the 2022-23 campaign.
“If clubs want their squads to be together during pre-season, don’t sell your soul to the devil,” he told Football Insider’s Adam Williams.
“Rather than cashing in, either stay in this country or don’t go on tour where you need all your players to be fully vaccinated.
“That’s what they need to do if they want to have players playing together as we reach the start of the new season.”
Palace face Leeds United in their final friendly next Friday (22 July)/
They then kick off their 2022-23 campaign at home to Arsenal on 5 August.
In other news, ex-Premier League referee issues “alarming” claim as three-year ban confirmed after Crystal Palace development.