Crystal Palace star Mateta breaks silence after kick to the face and being stretchered off against Millwall

During Crystal Palace‘s FA Cup fifth-round clash with Millwall, all attention was drawn to star striker Jean-Philippe Mateta, who was stretchered off the pitch after taking a kick to the face. Shortly after the match, the Frenchman broke his silence, offering an update to the fans.

In the sixth minute, Will Hughes played a long ball for Mateta to chase. Millwall goalkeeper attempted to intercept it outside the penalty area, but in doing so, kicked Mateta in the left side of his face. After a quick VAR review, Roberts was sent off for the reckless tackle, and Mateta was treated on the pitch for several minutes before being stretchered off and taken to the hospital.

In the aftermath, Mateta shared an optimistic message on his Instagram: “Thank you all for your kind messages. I’m doing well. I hope to be back very soon. And stronger than ever. Well done guys for the great job today. I love you. JP,” he wrote, reassuring fans amid growing concern.

Though there has been no official update on his injury, Mateta’s message reassured supporters that he is in good health. His absence will undoubtedly be a significant blow to Palace, as he has directly contributed to nearly 30% of the club’s 51 goals this season, with 15 goals and three assists.

As for the match, Crystal Palace secured their spot in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup with a 3-1 victory at Selhurst Park. Japhet Tanganga’s own goal, along with strikes from Eddie Nketiah and Daniel Munoz, sealed the win for Palace.

Crystal Palace chairman addresses ‘life-endangering’ challenge

While Mateta was being attended to by the medical team, Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish was seen speaking with coaching staff, describing the challenge as “life-endangering.” During halftime, Parish was interviewed by BBC and gave an update on Mateta’s injury:

“So far, what we know is that he has a bad gash behind his ear and a head injury. He’s at the hospital, and we hope for the best. There’s a lot of emotion in soccer, but we need to talk about that challenge. In all my years in soccer, I’ve never seen a challenge like it. I looked to see how old the goalkeeper is—he’s 30 years old,” Parish said.

“That is the most reckless challenge on a soccer pitch that I think I’ve ever seen and he needs to have a long hard look at himself that lad because he’s endangering a fellow professional – and maybe even his life with a challenge like that,” Palace chairman straightly stated, while also addressing Liam Roberts’s behavior.