Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner believes Millwall keeper Liam Roberts’ clash with Jean-Philippe Mateta could have been a career-ending challenge and deserved a red card.
Mateta was carried off on a stretcher and taken to hospital early in the hosts’ 3-1 FA Cup fifth-round victory at Selhurst Park.
He has since posted on social media that he is “doing well” and hopes to be “back very soon”.
Roberts, who had come out to meet a through ball, kicked the France international in the head and was dismissed after a VAR check in the eighth minute.
A message from JP 🥹
We love you. #CPFC pic.twitter.com/nyooljhftw
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) March 1, 2025
Millwall manager Alex Neil also admitted it was a red card offence, but defended his goalkeeper and said he did not set out to deliberately injure Mateta.
Glasner, who condemned Roberts’ high foot but also did not feel he intended to injure the France international, said after the match: “I heard he’s conscious and that it is a serious ear injury.
“I didn’t see it in real time during the game. I didn’t want to see it after the game, because I never want to watch an injury, but then of course because I was going to have to talk about it I watched it, and it was a very, very serious foul play.
“Tough to see. I don’t want to see it anymore. The good thing is, just imagine if he hits his face straight, with his power, with the studs, it is the end of JP’s career.
“I’m pretty sure he didn’t want to injure JP in this situation, but I also think that you have to decide when you make such an impact, you just can’t do it in this way.
“The risk of a very, very serious injury is just too high, so I think it was the wrong decision the keeper took in this moment, but I always believe in the fair play of sportsmen, I know they never want to injure their opposition players.
“I think he didn’t want to injure him in that way, but I think the decision to go to the ball with his foot at this height, with this intensity was the completely wrong decision, and, of course, I think everybody agrees that the red card was the right decision.”

Millwall fell behind in the 33rd minute through Japhet Tanganga’s own goal.
Daniel Munoz added another for the Eagles seven minutes later and Wes Harding clawed one back for the visitors deep in first-half stoppage time before Eddie Nketiah – who came on for Mateta – extended Palace’s lead nine minutes from time.
Glasner was pleased to see his side through to the quarter-finals, but added: “I don’t feel happiness today, still a sadness and doubt.
“My fingers are crossed that he can play in the quarter-finals.”
Mateta lay on the pitch receiving treatment for some time before he was carried off, and some Millwall fans could be heard chanting “let him die”.
The PA news agency understands the FA cannot investigate the offensive chants directed at Mateta – which do not breach regulations – but will be investigating homophobic chants directed at Palace defender Ben Chilwell.
Speaking to the BBC, Palace chairman Steve Parish condemned the collision as “the most reckless challenge on a football pitch I think I’ve ever seen” and described the injury as “a bad gash behind his ear and a head injury”.

Lions boss Neil insisted he was too occupied to hear the chants, and dismissed Parish’s assessment about the severity of the challenge.
He said: “Listen, what’s happened is Liam’s come out, he’s tried to get the ball, he’s mis-timed it, he’s caught the lad.
“It’s no more than that from my perspective, so I completely disagree with that. He’s certainly not intending to hurt the player or anything like it.
“Obviously we wish Mateta the best, and hoping he’s back on the pitch. I don’t know how bad it is or how bad it isn’t.
“I’ll be honest with you, at the time I thought he actually made contact with the ball. I haven’t seen it back, but the fact is if he’s caught him then he deserves to be sent off.
“It’s a sending-off, but it’s certainly no more than that.”
Jack Grealish dedicated his goal to his late brother after scoring in Manchester City’s 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Leicester on Wednesday.The England international hit his first Premier League goal for 16 months, on his first start in the competition since last December, as City moved back into fourth with a comfortable success at the Etihad Stadium.It came on the 25th anniversary of...

David Moyes bemoaned an “offside” goal that gave Liverpool a 1-0 win over Everton – but admitted James Tarkowski was lucky to avoid an early red card on a controversial night at Anfield.Diogo Jota’s 57th-minute goal gave Liverpool a 100th derby win and moved them a step closer to the Premier League title, but both sides were left unhappy with decisions from referee Sam Barr...

Eddie Howe hailed Sandro Tonali’s shooting power after seeing him cap a fine display with a stunning winner to edge Newcastle into the race for Champions League qualification.The 24-year-old Italy international brought an incident-packed encounter to a fitting conclusion with a 74th-minute piledriver which beat goalkeeper Mark Flekken from an improbable angle to hand the Magpies a precious 2...

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery believes Marcus Rashford is “progressively getting better” in all aspects of his game following his first Premier League goal for the club.The on-loan Manchester United forward set Villa on course for a comprehensive 3-0 win over fellow European hopefuls Brighton with a 51st-minute finish at the Amex Stadium.Rashford’s milestone strike came three days ...

Southampton boss Ivan Juric vowed to keep fighting as relegation moved sharply into focus after Crystal Palace denied them only a third Premier League win of the season.Substitute Matheus Franca’s stoppage-time header, to secure a 1-1 draw for the Eagles, means Saints will be down at the weekend if they lose at Tottenham and Wolves beat Ipswich.If relegation is confirmed on Sunday, Southampt...

Derby boss John Eustace insists his side are reaping the rewards for the hard work they have put in since he was appointed as manager after the Rams earned a 2-0 win over Preston to climb out of the Sky Bet Championship relegation zone.Derby came out firing after a lacklustre opening period and Craig Forsyth coolly slotted the hosts in front with his fourth goal of the season.The Rams doubled thei...

Notts County manager Stuart Maynard hailed a “massive” three points as his side comfortably saw off MK Dons at Meadow Lane to maintain their promotion challenge.Two stunning strikes from David McGoldrick and Will Jarvis from the edge of the box, either side of Nick Tsaroulla’s close-range effort, earned County a convincing 3-0 win.“I think every three points is massive now,...

Kieran McKenna was not getting too giddy dreaming of a miracle escape from relegation after Ipswich beat Bournemouth 2-1 to pick up their first Premier League win of 2025.Goals from Nathan Broadhead and top-scorer Liam Delap did the damage as Ipswich put a further dent in Bournemouth’s hopes of qualifying for Europe.McKenna, whose side are still nine points adrift of 17th-placed Wolves who t...

Liverpool re-established their 12-point lead at the top of the Premier League with Diogo Jota’s strike against Everton settling a second controversial Merseyside derby of the season.Jota’s first league goal since mid-January was potentially one of his most important of the campaign as the 1-0 victory kept second-placed Arsenal at more than arm’s length.It also ended Everton manag...

Ewan Otoo poured cold water on Livingston’s title ambitions in the Scottish Championship by netting the winner in struggling Dunfermline’s 1-0 win.Three points for the visitors would have been enough to lift them above Ayr United and within five of pace-setters Falkirk, but they were unable to take the chance.After back-to-back wins they were brought back to earth at East End Park, whe...



- 1 Hot WAG flaunts 'astonishing' washboard abs in bikini
- 2 Danny Rohl hails Sheffield Wednesday resilience in draw at Cardiff
- 3 Alfie May double sends Birmingham step closer to Championship
- 4 Marcus Rashford scores first Premier League goal for Villa in win at Brighton
- 5 Ryan Lowe and Conor Hourihane felt team deserved more as Wigan and Barnsley draw
- 6 Mat Sadler hails Taylor Allen set-piece skills after Walsall snatch draw
- 7 Chris Davies says Alfie May’s goal drought never concerned him
- 8 Football fan 'eats' raw pig's head in ultimate insult
- 9 Marcus Rashford still looking to improve after firing Villa into FA Cup semis
- 10 Chelsea prepare €70m for Barcelona defender