Uche seizes Palace chance with first goal

Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner has praised Christantus Uche after the Nigerian midfielder marked his first start with a goal in a 3-0 UEFA Conference League win over Shelbourne in Dublin.

Uche, on loan at Selhurst Park, had previously made nine substitute appearances and his lack of minutes contributed to his omission from Nigeria’s 28-man squad for the 2025 AFCON qualifiers.

Given a rare start, the midfielder made an instant impact, opening the scoring after 11 minutes by calmly finishing a pass from Eddie Nketiah. He later struck the post, with Nketiah converting the rebound for Palace’s second.

After the match, Glasner praised Uche, saying, “the most important thing is always scoring goals… he also assisted one.”

The Austrian coach added, “It was time for Uche… deserved it.”

He said it could be turning point.