Eberechi Eze sustains Achilles injury in training which could rule him out until 2022; £16m signing from QPR due to see a specialist on Wednesday; Eze has scored four goals in 29 Premier League starts for Crystal Palace
Wednesday 19 May 2021 12:30, UK
Crystal Palace attacking midfielder Eberechi Eze could be out injured until the new year after sustaining an Achilles injury in training.
The £16m signing from QPR is due to see a specialist on Wednesday to establish the extent of the injury, which occurred in training on Tuesday.
The worst-case outcome is that Eze will miss between six to eight months, effectively ruling him out until well into the winter and potentially into 2022.
Eze, who represented England at Under 20 and Under 21 level, has scored four goals in 29 Premier League starts for Crystal Palace this season.
Palace boss Roy Hodgson was not aware of the severity of the injury when he gave his press conference on Tuesday.
Hodgson was speaking to the media ahead of Palace's fixture against Arsenal on Wednesday night, the 73-year-old's final home game at Selhurst Park after he announced this week he will leave the club at the end of the season.
"After more than 45 years of coaching I have decided that the time is right for me to step away from the rigours of top-flight Premier League football, so our final two matches will be my last ones as manager of Crystal Palace," Hodgson said on Tuesday.
"It's been a particularly rewarding period of my football life and career to have been able to spend these last four seasons with Palace. I feel now that at the end of another successful season, in which we have secured our Premier League status, the moment is right for me to step down from my responsibilities of being a full-time manager."
Palace have as many as six candidates currently under consideration to replace Hodgson, with ex-Chelsea and Derby boss Frank Lampard and former Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe, both currently free agents, high on the list at Selhurst Park.
Swansea's Steve Cooper and Barnsley's Valerian Ismael - both currently battling it out in the Championship play-offs - are also among the contenders.
There are admirers of Scott Parker at the club too, and the job he has done at Fulham despite relegation from the Premier League this season.
Ex-Arsenal winger Freddie Ljungberg, who was in interim charge at the Emirates between Unai Emery and Mikel Arteta, has also been considered.
Palace have had a long-standing interest in Burnley boss Sean Dyche - but are now looking in a different direction, which also appears to distance them from the likes of Chris Wilder.
Sky Sports News has been told the club want their next manager to bring with them a new identity of progressive, attacking football and developing young talent from their successful academy.
It gained Category One status in July last year and has produced the likes of Tyrick Mitchell and Wilfried Zaha. Palace want more players to come through.
When they speak to candidates, they are expected to ask them to pitch their unique visions for the future of the Eagles.
Lampard has been widely reported to be the frontrunner but Sky Sports News has been told his appointment is not a foregone conclusion.
Howe, meanwhile, has held discussions with Celtic but he has not yet been announced as Neil Lennon's successor in Glasgow.
Parker has recently spoken of a need to discuss his future with the Fulham hierarchy ahead of their third mission to get back in the top flight in five years, wanting to "break the cycle" of promotion and immediate relegation.
Cooper and Ismael, who played for Palace 13 times in 1998, have got their Championship teams playing an attractive, winning brand of football but are relatively new to first-team management in England and yet to prove themselves in the top-flight.
