We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions. You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below.
The cookies that are categorized as "Necessary" are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site. ...
Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data.
Functional cookies help perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collecting feedback, and other third-party features.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics such as the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customized advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyze the effectiveness of the ad campaigns.
Patrick Vieira is defending the African Cup of Nations. The Crystal Palace manager is calling for more respect for the competition, which he says is as important as the Euro.
After Jurgen Klopp's "small league" and Luciano Spalletti's "invisible monster", Crystal Palace coach Patrick Vieira is taking the opposite view of his colleagues. The French coach is defending the 2021 African Cup of Nations tooth and nail. '' I will never prevent a player from taking part in the competition," the French coach swore in a pre-match press conference against Tottenham.'' I believe that this tournament must be more respected. It's as important as the Euro.''
Patrick Vieira will be without key players during the Africa Cup of Nations, with Senegal's Cheikhou Kouyate, Ghana's Jordan Ayew and Ivory Coast's Wilfried Zaha all missing.
The latter is currently the club's second highest scorer with five goals. Crystal Palace (20 pts) are 11th in the Premier League.
However, the tug of war between European clubs and the AFCON organizers continues. After the competition was maintained, the European clubs came back to the charge. This time, the World Leagues Forum refuses to release their players on 26 December as agreed by FIFA. They are threatening to let their players go only on 3 January, one week before the competition.
