MX23RW : Sunday, January 24 00:39:02| >> :120:37701:37701:

Crystal Palace to deal with Eberechi Eze internally after QPR visit

Crystal Palace to deal with Eberechi Eze internally after QPR visit
© Reuters
QPR boss Mark Warburton admitted his club's mistake in allowing the Palace midfielder to attend the game.

Crystal Palace will deal with Eberechi Eze's coronavirus "lapses" internally while QPR boss Mark Warburton has admitted his club made a mistake in allowing the winger to attend their game on Saturday.

Eze was allowed to sit in the directors' box at Loftus Road to watch his former club face Fulham in the FA Cup despite the current ban on fans and the national lockdown.

The Football Association is understood to be looking into the incident which seems to be the latest in a string involving footballers breaching coronavirus protocols.

Mark Warburton has admitted QPR's fault
Mark Warburton has admitted QPR's fault (PA)

"We know the situation that society is facing in this country, we are all very aware of it," said Warburton at a pre-match press conference.

"QPR as a club have stringent protocols in place that we apply very strongly to every single player and staff member.

"On this occasion we should have declined the request. It's as simple as that. We made the error.

"Eberechi is an outstanding character. I can't speak highly enough of him. He made a request, we should have said no.

"On this rare occasion we have made a mistake, it's as plain and simple as that. It will not happen again."

Palace said they did not know that Eze was planning to watch his old team-mates and insisted the 22-year-old, signed from Rangers in the summer, now realises he should not have attended the match.

The Eagles have confirmed they will deal internally with the incident, plus the fact he was pictured not wearing a mask.

A Palace statement read: "QPR have acknowledged they made a mistake in hosting Eberechi Eze in the directors' box at Saturday's FA Cup match against Fulham without our knowledge.

Eberechi Eze was pictured without a mask
Eberechi Eze was pictured without a mask (Tess Derry/PA)

"Whilst we recognise Eberechi's desire to support his former team-mates, he accepts it was an error of judgement to attend the match.

"We were also concerned to see pictures of Eberechi not wearing a mask at certain moments and are speaking to him about these apparent lapses, which will be dealt with internally."

Eze could still face the wrath of Eagles boss Roy Hodgson, who said last week that no further breaches of Government guidelines by his players will be accepted after Luka Milivojevic broke the rules on New Year's Eve.

Palace captain Milivojevic issued an apology after his household mixed with Fulham forward Aleksandar Mitrovic and his family.

There were further breaches of the regulations over the festive period involving Tottenham, West Ham and Manchester City players.

ID:430138:cQx

Click here for more stories about Eberechi Eze

Click here for more stories about Crystal Palace

Share this article now:
Did you know...?
Crystal Palace winger Eberechi Eze celebrates scoring against Sheffield United on January 2, 2021
Read Next:
FA to investigate Palace attacker Eze's attendance at QPR clash
>
Latest Sports Video
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free daily transfer newsletter! Sent twice a day during the transfer window.

rhs 2.0
Todays Game Header Right
Championship
FA Cup
La Liga
Serie A
Bundesliga
Ligue 1
Eredivisie
Primeira Liga
Scottish League Cup
Turkish Super Lig
Belgian Pro League
Greek Superleague
Swiss Super League
Segunda Division
Serie B
2.Bundesliga
Eerste Divisie
Brasileiro
Uruguayan Primera Division
Liga MX
Australian A-League
Premier League 2 - Div 1
Women's Super League
African Nations Championship
NFL
8.05pm
Buccaneers
@
Packers
11.40pm
Bills
@
Chiefs
Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester UnitedMan Utd19124336251140
2Manchester CityMan City18115231131838
3Leicester CityLeicester19122535211438
4Liverpool1997337221534
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs1896333171633
6Everton1710252821732
7West Ham UnitedWest Ham199552722532
8Aston Villa1792631181329
9Chelsea1985633231029
10Southampton188552621529
11Arsenal198382319427
12Leeds UnitedLeeds187293034-423
13Crystal Palace196582233-1123
14Wolverhampton WanderersWolves196492129-822
15Burnley185491022-1219
16Newcastle UnitedNewcastle1954101832-1419
17Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton193882229-717
18Fulham1826101527-1212
19West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom1925121543-2811
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd1912161032-225

Subscribe to our Newsletter


Transfer Talk Daily
Match previews - twice weekly
Morning Briefing (7am UTC)
Ultra close-up image of Kevin De Bruyne [NOT FOR USE IN ARTICLES]Get the latest transfer news, match previews and news direct to your inbox!