Jean-Philippe Mateta has said he is “doing well” and hopes to be back on the pitch “very soon” after suffering a sickening blow to the head following an awful challenge from Millwall goalkeeper Liam Roberts in the FA Cup.
The in-form Crystal Palace striker was taken off on a stretcher six minutes into the fifth round tie which saw the Premier League side beat their south London rivals 3-1 in the FA Cup.
He wrote on social media: “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.”
The incident occurred when Mateta raced after a long ball forward and was clattered full-on by Roberts who had rushed out of his goal to clear.
Millwall’s stand-in keeper made slight contact with the ball but followed through dangerously and forcefully, with his studs colliding horribly with Mateta’s head.
Referee Michael Oliver inexplicably failed to produce a red card initially, but he soon changed his mind after being sent to review the incident on the pitchside monitor.
Mateta was given oxygen and received treatment on the pitch for around 10 minutes before being carefully placed on a stretcher and carried off.
The away fans chanted “Let him die,” as he was attended to.
The Football Association has condemned those chants but will not investigate them as they do not breach their regulations. They will, however, look into alleged homophobic slurs directed at Ben Chilwell.
The 27-year-old appeared to give a thumbs up in the direction of the Palace dugout as he was carried off.
There were 13 minutes added on at the end of the first half with Millwall winger Camiel Neghli also forced off through injury. Palace supporters repeated the “Let him die,” chant as Neghli received treatment for what appeared to be a muscle injury.
“So far what we know is he’s got a bad gash behind his ear and a head injury. Obviously he’s at the hospital and we hope for the best,” Palace chairman Steve Parish told BBC Sport at half-time.
Parish added: “There’s a lot of emotion in football but we need to talk about that challenge. In all my time watching football I’ve never seen a challenge like it.
“I looked to see how old the keeper is, he’s 30 years old. That is the most reckless challenge on a football pitch I think I’ve ever seen. He needs to have a long, hard look at himself that lad because he’s endangered a fellow professional maybe even with his life with a challenge like that.
“It’s very difficult for me to talk about the rest of the game because we’re worried about JP and it’s just a terrible, terrible challenge.
“It’s a dreadful challenge and why the referee needs to go to the screen I’ve got no idea.”
"That is the most reckless challenge on a football pitch I think I've ever seen."
Crystal Palace chairman and co-owner Steve Parish has spoken about Millwall keeper Liam Roberts' challenge on Jean-Philippe Mateta. pic.twitter.com/gkcR9IMSEI
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) March 1, 2025
Palace boss Oliver Glasner, who had to retire from playing due to a head injury, admitted afterwards that he did not feel “happiness” about the result due to his concern for Mateta’s wellbeing.
“He’s in hospital and I heard that he’s conscious. He has a serious ear injury,” he said.
“To be honest, I didn’t see it in live time. I didn’t want to see it after the game and watch an injury but of course, I have to talk about so I watched it. It was very, very serious foul play. It was tough to see and I don’t want to see it anymore.”
He added: “I’m pretty sure that he didn’t want to injure JP in this situation, but I also think you have to decide when we make such an impact… you just can’t do it in this way. The risk of a very serious injury is just too high.
“Just imagine if he hits his face straight, with all this power and the studs, it could have been the end of JP’s career.”
Palace went in front after 33 minutes when Will Hughes’ shot was deflected into his own goal by Japhet Tanganga.
The ex-Tottenham defender inadvertently played a part in Palace’s second too as he nudged the ball to Daniel Munoz to convert from close range.
Millwall got one back just before half-time through Wes Harding, but Eddie Nketiah, on as a substitute for Mateta sealed victory for Palace in the second half.
Palace will discover their FA Cup quarter-final opponents following the conclusion of Manchester United’s tie against Fulham on Sunday.
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