‘A fantastic goal’ - Crystal Palace manager praises Uche after scoring remarkable goal in Conference League

Crystal Palace was held to a 2-2 draw by KuPS in their Europa Conference League match on Thursday night.

The home crowd witnessed Uche's immediate impact in his first start for the club, needing just five minutes to open the scoring, delivering an exquisite, curling outside-of-the-boot strike into the top corner.

Despite the spectacular start, Crystal Palace struggled to maintain their dominance, allowing KuPS to find a way back into the match as the game's structure began to fray. 

After the match, manager Oliver Glasner praised the young midfielder's contribution while acknowledging his team's overall shortcomings.

"I was pleased with the performance, especially of the youngsters," Glasner told TNT Sports. "Of course, a fantastic goal from Uche. Then we could see we lost a little bit of structure for ten to fifteen minutes."

The Austrian manager confirmed that the heavily rotated lineup was a deliberate choice to prioritize the upcoming Premier League fixture against Leeds United.

"We rested a few players tonight because we knew we will need them for a game in a few days," he explained. "Leeds now know our starting XI because none of the players who started today will play on Saturday."

Uche, who has made six substitute appearances in the Premier League, is not expected to make his full league debut this weekend. 

The draw secured a playoff spot for KuPS, while Palace's 10th-place finish means they will face further European hurdles instead of advancing directly to the Round of 16.