Crystal Palace dealt double injury blow ahead of Shakhtar second leg as key midfielder returns | OneFootball

Eagles 90 minutes away from first European final

Crystal Palace have been dealt a double injury blow ahead of their Conference League semi-final second leg at home to Shakhtar Donetsk.

Oliver Glasner has confirmed that Evann Guessand and Borna Sosa will both be unavailable for selection as Palace eye a place in their first European final.

Guessand has missed Palace’s last six games in all competitions with a knee injury, while Sosa did not travel to Bournemouth last weekend after suffering a knock.

Guessand was pictured with heavy strapping on his right leg as Palace trained on Wednesday morning, while there was no sign of Sosa at Copers Cope.

Asked about the pair’s fitness in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Glasner confirmed neither player would be available for selection.

“Evann trained today but just partly. It’s too early, so he doesn’t make the squad tomorrow. We have to decide on a daily basis,” Glasner said.

“Borna Sosa is still out. He was not available for Bournemouth. He is also still out.”

There is a silver lining, though, as Glasner confirmed Will Hughes has been passed fit for the match, having recovered from a brief illness.

While Guessand will miss the game against Shakhtar, his return to training comes as a boost for Palace, who will hope he can play again between now and the end of the season.

The Ivory Coast international has scored twice in 11 games in all competitions since arriving at Palace in January.

Glasner admitted it was good to see Guessand back in individual training and added that the next step for him was to be fully integrated with the rest of the first team.

“It is nice (to see him back training). Let's say the last part of the rehab is getting integrated into team training,” Glasner continued.

“We don’t have a lot of training, so that’s why we really use every training we have. “It is different if you train individually. He is still doing work with the rehab coach individually, and when you are part of team training, this is what he needs now. Like always, player welfare is most important.”