Oliver Glasner may have found his own Jadon Sancho after new Crystal Palace scenes
Oliver Glasner may have just uncovered one of the next biggest gems despite a disappointing night in Europe for Crystal Palace.
When you think of the stars to be discovered at Selhurst Park, Eberechi Eze has now joined Arsenal, while Michael Olise is lighting up the Bundesliga with Vincent Kompany‘s Bayern Munich.
Either of those stars would have made a key difference as Palace drew 2-2 with KuPS in the Europa Conference League on Thursday, 18 December, having been forced into the play-off spots.
Understandably, with a difficult test against Leeds United up next, Glasner made a multitude of changes to the starting lineup, handing out debuts to some of the youngest talents in South London.
Crystal Palace youngsters given an opportunity vs KuPS
George King, Dean Benamar, Kaden Rodney, and Joel Drakes-Thomas were all handed starts, with 22-year-old Justin Devenny given the opportunity to prove himself in the middle of the park.
Devenny struggled earlier in the competition, but with a goal and an assist, it is clear why Glasner is such a fan of the Northern Irishman, and why he is already one short of half a century of games.
However, it was one of the debutants who caught the eye at Selhurst Park, with Palace fans blown away by the maturity shown by Drakes-Thomas, who lasted the entire 90 minutes.
The 16-year-old created the most chances of anyone on the pitch, completed 100 per cent of his dribbles, unleashed three shots, and won 100 per cent of his tackles [FotMob].
Joel Drakes-Thomas could be the next Jadon Sancho
While he will have been an unknown figure before kick-off, that is certainly no longer the case at Selhurst Park, and Glasner appears to have taken a chance on one of Palace’s next up-and-coming talents.
As relayed by The Guardian’s Ed Aarons (18 December), Drakes-Thomas played for the same youth team in Lambeth as Jadon Sancho, who has now gone on to feature for multiple European giants.
It is still extremely early days for the youngster, who has skipped multiple age groups already, but there is absolutely no doubt after Thursday night that he has the chance to be someone truly special.
The Eagles appear to have produced several exciting talents over the years, and Drakes-Thomas could be another name that is added to the list in a few seasons.