Patrick Vieira has expressed his belief that Conor Gallagher is the "only one who will lose" as a result of Chelsea's decision to prevent the on-loan Crystal Palace midfielder to play in their FA Cup semi-final.
Palace and Chelsea are due to face off for a place in the FA Cup final in a London derby clash at Wembley on April 17.
The Eagles sent a request to Chelsea for Gallagher to be allowed special dispensation to play, despite current FA rules preventing loan players from featuring against their parent clubs, which was denied last week.
What's been said?
The terms of Gallagher's loan deal also stipulate that he cannot line up against Chelsea, but they could have given the green light for changes to be made.
Vieira cannot understand why they didn't, because the midfielder will now miss out on the chance to play in one of the biggest games on the domestic calendar, which he feels would have been a deserved reward for his performances throughout the 2021-22 campaign.
“It’s not the best rule because the only one who will lose is Conor," the Palace boss said in his latest press conference.
"There’s a semi-final, it’s a really exciting game about how you will manage yourself and prepare yourself to play that game, then there’s playing that kind of game and the importance of it.
“It’s an experience the player is missing and I’m disappointed for him. He has played all the games so far and if there’s somebody who deserves to be in the semi-final, it’s him because of his performances, so I’m disappointed he won’t be able to play.
“The decision for Chelsea to send him on loan is to play these kind of games. We have as a group an opportunity to play an important game and that game would have given him more confidence and belief. We could lose but for him to have been on the field is what he needs to keep developing himself.
"Since he has been with us, he has been fantastic and for him not to have a chance to get involved in that game, it is something frustrating for his development. I feel for him because he wanted to play in that game — every player would want to play in that game.”
Gallagher's impact at Palace
Gallagher has recorded eight goals and five assists in 31 appearances across all competitions for Palace since joining the club on loan from Chelsea last July.
The 22-year-old has also broken into the England national team, but Vieira says he hasn't been his usual self since the draw for the FA Cup semi-final was made.
"The next day in training he was affected by that," the Frenchman added. "He knew straightaway that it was a game that he would not have the chance to get involved in. We feel for him.
"He put his head back into training straight away. It will be more difficult when we enter the week of the game.
"It will be challenging for him, looking at the team, preparing himself and him not getting involved. That will be challenging for him."