Manchester City fans took great pleasure in watching Crystal Palace destroy Manchester United last night – and one player the club have been linked with in recent times had a field day.
With City finishing the season strongly, the same cannot be said for United, who were thrashed 4-0 by Crystal Palace on Monday night and are languishing in eighth place in the Premier League table.
The Red Devils turned in a rotten performance at Selhurst Park, against a Palace side rejuvenated under new manager Oliver Glasner.
It’s important for United to build momentum ahead of the FA Cup final against City later this month.
But their preparations for that game are definitely not going well, with last night’s chastening defeat meaning they’ve now won just two of their last 10 in the competition.
The star of the show last night for Palace was Michael Olise, a player Manchester City are thought to admire – and Ebere Eze was full of praise for his teammate after last night’s game…
Ebere Eze brands Manchester City target Michael Olise ‘a top player’ after two goals vs Manchester United
Olise was in fine fettle last night against United, as he scored two goals to take his tally to nine for the season in just 17 appearances.
United were all over the shop, and the France U21 international had a field day as a result.
In the 12th minute he made a fool of Casemiro, getting by the Brazilian with ease before waltzing through to score from the edge of the box.
In the second-half, he then lashed in an effort from the right side after cutting in on his strong left foot. Olise was at the heart of everything for Palace and after the game, his teammate Eze hailed him.
He said (as quoted by cpfc.co.uk): “He’s a top player. He’s got quality, dribbling, finishing, everything.
“I think we’ve played together for a whole month now, not as much as we’ve wanted to, but when we do play together, we enjoy it a lot.”
Pep might fancy Olise swoop this summer
Many will share Eze’s assessment of Olise, who really does look a fine young player with very big potential.
City fans will remeber that there was a number of reports last summer suggesting that City admired the player. The Athletic’s Sam Lee reported at the time that the club saw him as ‘the one’ to replace Riyad Mahrez.
In the end, nothing materialised and Olise went on to sign a new contract at Selhurst Park. But last month, it was claimed that City retained an interest in Olise, alongside players like Paqueta and Jamal Musiala.
The £100,000-a-week ace hasn’t played as much as he’d have liked this season due to hamstring problems. But when he has done, he’s looked really good and one wonders if Pep might fancy City reigniting their previous interest.
Bernardo Silva could finally be leaving the club this summer and the manager will need a new right-sided option if that happens. Olise can also play centrally, although he doesn’t really operate in those deeper midfield areas like Bernardo can.