Ian Wright praised one Crystal Palace star after their Carabao Cup defeat at Arsenal, saying he’s the type of player he would have wanted to play alongside.
Arsenal will take on Chelsea in the cup semi-finals next year after defeating Palace on penalties following a 1-1 draw on Tuesday night.
The Gunners dominated at the Emirates but had to rely on an 80th minute Maxence Lacroix own goal for the breakthrough, before Marc Guehi equalised deep in stoppage time.
15 straight penalties were scored in the shootout before the unfortunate Lacroix saw his effort saved by Kepa Arrizabalaga.
While Mikel Arteta’s side were the better team on the night, Oliver Glasner’s Eagles earned many plaudits for their resilience and the way they came back into the game after a one-sided first-half.
Key to this was Adam Wharton, with the England international putting in yet another eye-catching performance in midfield, notably delivering the free-kick that lead to Guehi’s equaliser.
‘It’s the composure and the technical ability. He can get himself out of little pockets of areas,’ former Palace and Arsenal striker Wright said of Wharton on ITV post-match.
‘If you’ve got willing runners or a good hold up man like a [Jean-Philippe] Mateta who can hold it up and people could go and join him – he gives you the ball.
‘He’s the kind of midfielder I want to be playing in front of because I know he’s going to constantly be looking for me, even if it’s a difficult pass. He looks forward and that’s what you want from him.
‘He got a lot better chances to do that in the second-half than he did in the first-half and that’s why Palace started to play a lot better.
‘They should have started the game like that. They should have started the game with a little bit more gusto, a little bit more “let’s go for Arsenal” because they got players trying to impress themselves. So, they put should have put then under a bit more pressure.’
Wharton, 21, has only got better and better since moving to Selhurst Park from Blackburn Rovers, just under two years ago and is expected to be included in the Three Lions squad for the next World Cup.
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The FA Cup winner’s form has attracted plenty of interest from around the Premier League and beyond, with Ruben Amorim keen to bring the £70million-rated star to Manchester United.
‘The sky is the limit for him,’ Wharton’s former teammate and Palace captain Joel Ward added.
‘The way in which he plays. the way in which he’s handled the spotlight that’s been on him since he’s come to Palace.
‘He deserves the plaudits that he’s got because he’s come in and he’s changed the way we play in many ways. He’s the orchestrator in there and he’s the quarterback who dictates the game.
‘His first thought is to play forward, and he’s not scared of making those passes time and time again.’
Following the disappointment of the cup exit, Palace have a quick turnaround before their Premier League clash against Tottenham on Sunday.
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