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Crystal Palace have decided not to lodge an appeal against the red card shown to Maxence Lacroix at Old Trafford.
The Crystal Palace No.5 was given a straight red card for the denial of a goalscoring opportunity last time out during the 2-1 defeat at Manchester United, as Matheus Cunha went down softly after a slight touch on the shoulder.
Oliver Glasner confirmed that Crystal Palace would not be appealing the decision to dismiss Maxence Lacroix in his press conference ahead of the trip to Tottenham when saying “we have to accept” the call.
Some have questioned why the Eagles wouldn’t just make an appeal for the sake of it given how poorly the decision was received by the football community, but there was a risk of the situation becoming worse had an appeal been lodged.
Crystal Palace risked losing Maxence Lacroix for a fourth game in the event of an appeal
The Frenchman is already set to miss the next three Premier League games for Crystal Palace after his red card.
However, had an appeal been made and the Premier League deemed it to be a ‘frivolous’ one, they hold the power to extend a ban by a further match.
For those unaware of the meaning of that word, it is defined as: not having any serious purpose or value.
Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images
Given the fact there are only ten Premier League games remaining this season, Crystal Palace clearly felt there was no point in running the risk of losing the influential 25-year-old for almost half of them, especially given the lack of options in central defence right now.
Lacroix can, however, feature in the upcoming UEFA Conference League clash against AEK Larnaca on Thursday 12th March, as suspensions picked up in domestic action do not carry over into European football.
The Cypriot outfit have been plunged into uncertainty following the departures of manager Imanol Idiakez and Technical Director Xavi Roca, so Crystal Palace will be feeling confident ahead of that tie.
Oliver Glasner names options to replace Maxence Lacroix for Tottenham, Leeds and Manchester City clashes
Glasner revealed in his press conference ahead of the London derby against Spurs that Jefferson Lerma is yet to return to full fitness, meaning Chadi Riad or Nathaniel Clyne will step in for Lacroix while he misses the next three Premier League games.
The Austrian said: “Lerma is back in the squad but not ready to start. He trained with us and is ok. It’s quite early, but if we need him for 15, 20 minutes at the end we have him.
“That means it is either Chadi or Nathaniel Clyne will play. They are the options we have and one of them will start.”
Riad has appeared more recently than Clyne, with the Morocco international starting the 1-0 win over Wolves before the trip to Manchester United, so we would presume Glasner will opt for the 22-year-old ahead of the England international for the meeting with Tottenham.