Controversy at Crystal Palace as Luka Milivojević starts vs Sheffield United, despite breaking Covid protocols on NYE
A potential fallout is on the cards at Crystal Palace, after captain Luka Milivojevic was permitted to start the club’s meeting with Sheffield United, despite having seemingly broken Covid-19 protocols just days ago.
Last Updated: January 3, 2021 2:06 pm
Schlupp & Eze on target
Roy Hodgson’s men are currently locked in action with the Blades at Selhurst Park.
Palace headed into proceedings in search of a bounce-back result, having not managed a single win across their last 5 in the Premier League.
And, as things stand, a bounce-back 3 points is precisely what the capital outfit are headed towards.
The hosts opened the afternoon’s scoring inside the opening 4 minutes, when a gorgeously worked team move eventually saw Christian Benteke slip in Jeffrey Schlupp, who went on to pick out the bottom corner with style:
A nightmare start for Sheffield United! 😩
Christian Benteke tees up Jeffrey Schlupp and his deflected effort ends up in the bottom corner! 🦅
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Then, on the stroke of half-time, Sheffield United’s hopes of dragging themselves back into things were dealt a hammer blow.
This time it was a stroke of individual magic which saw the Blades undone, as substitute Eberechi Eze drove forward from his own half, dancing beyond the visitors’ midfield, before slotting home from just outside the area:
“He is a showman and Selhurst Park is his new theatre!” 🎭
Eberechi Eze glides through the Sheffield United defence before finishing with aplomb! What a goal! 👏
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📲 Download the @SkySports app! pic.twitter.com/yMFiUE7akW— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 2, 2021
Mili’s questionable actions
As outlined above, however, whilst things on the pitch are currently going swimmingly for Palace, in the aftermath of the clash, questions may well need to be answered.
This comes with Luka Milivojevic having been utilised from the off by Roy Hodgson this afternoon.
Serbian midfielder and Eagles captain Milivojevic has seen his name catch the headlines over the last 24 hours, on the back of the emergence of a series of posts on social media.
The 29-year-old was both photographed and recorded alongside fellow countryman Aleksandar Mitrovic at a New Year’s Eve gathering on Thursday night, in Instagram posts which have since been deleted by the Fulham star’s wife, Kristina Janjic.
7 other individuals were also spotted in the footage in question, one of whom came in the form of Milivojevic’s wife, Milica.
Such a gathering of course marked a serious breach of the current Covid-19 protocols in place in London, which insist that those living in the capital ‘must not meet socially indoors with family or friends unless they are part of your household or support bubble.’
It now remains to be seen whether Palace deem it necessary to release a post-game statement regarding the matter.
West Bromwich Albion vs Arsenal live streaming: Watch Premier League online
Sergio Reguilon among Tottenham trio believed to have broken Covid-19 rules on Christmas Day
This article was edited by Josh Barker.
Football Live streaming: Featured matches on January 17, 2020
| Game | Time | Predicted Score | Live Score Prediction/Live Score | How to Watch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Manchester City FC vs Crystal Palace FC | 40' | 2-0 | 1-0 |
Crystal Palace betting odds, next game:
Man City vs Crystal Palace odds: result, both teams to score, correct score & goalscorers
| Man City vs Crystal Palace Result/Both teams score | Yes | No |
|---|---|---|
| Man City | 2/1 | 4/5 |
| Crystal Palace | 22/1 | 20/1 |
| Draw | 9/1 | 16/1 |
| Man City vs Crystal Palace Goalscorers | First | Last | Anytime |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raheem Sterling | 7/4 | 7/4 | 8/11 |
| Fernando Gabriel Jesus | 2/1 | 2/1 | 4/5 |
| Kevin de Bruyne | 12/5 | 12/5 | 1/1 |
| Liam Delap | 12/5 | 12/5 | 1/1 |
| Ferran Torres | 13/5 | 13/5 | 11/10 |
Crystal Palace's latest videos
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| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Manchester United FC | 17 | 10 | 36 |
| 2 | Leicester City FC | 18 | 12 | 35 |
| 3 | Liverpool FC | 17 | 16 | 33 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 18 | 16 | 33 |
| 5 | Manchester City FC | 16 | 12 | 32 |
| 6 | Everton FC | 17 | 7 | 32 |
| 7 | Chelsea FC | 18 | 12 | 29 |
| 8 | Southampton FC | 18 | 5 | 29 |
| 9 | West Ham United FC | 18 | 4 | 29 |
| 10 | Aston Villa FC | 15 | 13 | 26 |
| 11 | Arsenal FC | 18 | 1 | 24 |
| 12 | Leeds United | 18 | -4 | 23 |
| 13 | Crystal Palace FC | 18 | -7 | 23 |
| 14 | Wolverhampton Wanderers FC | 19 | -8 | 22 |
| 15 | Newcastle United FC | 17 | -9 | 19 |
| 16 | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 19 | -7 | 17 |
| 17 | Burnley FC | 17 | -13 | 16 |
| 18 | Fulham FC | 17 | -11 | 12 |
| 19 | West Bromwich Albion | 18 | -27 | 11 |
| 20 | Sheffield United FC | 19 | -22 | 5 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 13 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 12 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 12 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 11 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 11 |
| Calvert-Lewin, Dominic | Everton FC | 11 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 10 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace FC | 8 |
| Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United FC | 8 |
| Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 7 |
| Ings, Danny | Southampton FC | 7 |
| Maupay, Neal | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 7 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 7 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 6 |
| Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa FC | 6 |
| Abraham, Tammy | Chelsea FC | 6 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City FC | 6 |
| Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 5 |
| Firmino, Roberto | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City FC | 5 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bellerin, Hector | Arsenal FC | 0 | 6 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 1 | 5 |
| Egan, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 5 |
| Hayden, Isaac | Newcastle United FC | 0 | 6 |
| Reid, Bobby | Fulham FC | 0 | 5 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 0 | 5 |
| Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 5 |
| Dunk, Lewis | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 1 | 4 |
| Phillips, Kalvin | Leeds United | 0 | 5 |
| Cash, Matty | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 5 |
| Gallagher, Conor | West Bromwich Albion | 0 | 5 |
| Evans, Jonny | Leicester City FC | 0 | 5 |
| Lundstram, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 4 |
| Kante, N`Golo | Chelsea FC | 0 | 5 |
| Milivojevic, Luka | Crystal Palace FC | 1 | 4 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 0 | 4 |
| Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 4 |
| Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 0 | 4 |
| Tielemans, Youri | Leicester City FC | 0 | 4 |
| Klich, Mateusz | Leeds United | 0 | 4 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 11 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City FC | 8 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 7 |
| Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 7 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 6 |
| Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 5 |
| Robertson, Andrew | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Digne, Lucas | Everton FC | 5 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 4 |
| Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 4 |
| Werner, Timo | Chelsea FC | 4 |
| Adams, Che | Southampton FC | 4 |
| Harrison, Jack | Leeds United | 4 |
| Chilwell, Benjamin | Chelsea FC | 4 |
| McGinn, John | Aston Villa FC | 4 |
| Cresswell, Aaron | West Ham United FC | 4 |
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 3 |
| Ings, Danny | Southampton FC | 3 |
| Firmino, Roberto | Liverpool FC | 3 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 3 |
