Eberechi Eze will not make his European debut on Thursday night with Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner saying the player felt unwell.
The England star was set to start his farewell match for Crystal Palace in the Conference League ahead of a £60million move to Arsenal, but that won’t happen now with Eze not included in the matchday squad.
Palace did not arrive at Selhurst Park to face Norwegian side Fredrikstad with the rest of his teammates, meaning his final game for the Eagles as is highly likely to be the 0-0 draw with Chelsea last weekend.
When asked about why Eze was absent, Glasner said: Obviously I expected that he would start today for us but he called me this morning and said that he doesn’t feel well to play in the evening.
“Of course I have to accept it and everything else you’ll have to ask the chairman.”
Glasner added: “I have to accept it. If a player tells me he’s not ready to play then of course I had to call the player that starts instead, Justin Devenny.
“(Make sure) that he’s ready because this is my responsibility to prepare the players who play for us in the best way.
“So it was quite busy. We don’t like to change the starting XI on matchday, especially in this situation.
“It’s the first time in European football for Crystal Palace but we have to deal with it and this is what we do in the best way.”
The Gunners made a late swoop for the 27-year-old after rivals Tottenham had been closing in on securing a deal to sign him.
talkSPORT confirmed on Wednesday night that the Gunners and Palace have reached an agreement in principle for £60m, plus add-ons, for the playmaker, which is a club-record sale for the Eagles.
Boyhood Gooner Eze, who also played in the club’s academy, went back on his agreement with Spurs to return to the Emirates Stadium.
Will Eze be cup-tied for Arsenal in the Champions League?
Oliver Glasner had already insisted that Eze’s emotional reaction to fans following Saturday’s 0-0 draw at Chelsea wasn’t a goodbye, but it appears it was.
Given Eze won’t now be playing in Europe, there is no chance of him being cup-tied.
But even if he had played, UEFA regulations have clearly outlined the stipulations regarding players representing multiple clubs in a single season.
Eze playing wouldn’t have affected his ability to represent Arsenal in the Champions League anyway.
This is because qualifying or play-off rounds don’t prevent players from turning out for a different team in the league phase of any of UEFA’s top three competitions.
As Crystal Palace’s clash with Fredrikstad is a play-off, and Arsenal are already safely into the league phase of the Champions League, Eze would have been allowed to play in both.
If Eze was to play in the Conference League proper, then the Gunners would have had to have waited until the knockout rounds to register him.