Before the French internationals of PSG and Arsenal, opposed in the final of the Champions League on Saturday, Maxence Lacroix and Jean-Philippe Mateta conclude their club season with the final of the Conference League contested by Crystal Palace against Rayo Vallecano, Wednesday in Leipzig (9 p.m., live on Canal+ Foot). They will then join Clairefontaine to prepare for the 2026 World Cup, Didier Deschamps having called the two players into his group of 26.
The media The Athletic retraces Mateta’s crazy season. The Eagles scorer has become a Palace hero. He had two seasons with 16 and 14 goals in the Premier League and above all contributed to the FA Cup coronation. But he ended up being booed by the public at Selhurst Park last January for his performances and his desire to leave. It was not only the season but perhaps the entire career of JP Mateta, 28, which then changed.
Mateta failed medical examination
The Paris Olympic silver medalist with Thierry Henry was to join AC Milan and Crystal Palace had already recruited a new center forward in the person of Jorgen Strand Larsen for 50 million euros. But Mateta’s transfer, for 30 million euros, was canceled by AC Milan at the last moment. Medical examinations revealed a knee in poor condition. Jean-Philippe Mateta had in fact played the first part of the season with pain.
Retained in London, Mateta then agreed with the Crystal Palace medical staff not to have an operation, in order to maintain his chances of playing in the North American World Cup. The native of Sevran (Seine-Saint-Denis), trained in Châteauroux, needed to rest. An arrival in Milan would not have allowed him to miss two months of competition. The 1.92 colossus took over in mid-March to contribute to his team’s progress in the Conference. Here he is at a European Cup match. While waiting for further events…
