Christantus Uche was not even on the bench for the Premier League clash between Crystal Palace and Bournemouth.
The summer signing from Getafe was one of 15 Crystal Palace players to return from international duty – having helped Nigeria record wins over Lesotho and Benin.
However, several others who played for their countries, including Yeremy Pino, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Ismaila Sarr, Daichi Kamada, Marc Guehi and Daniel Munoz were named in the starting XI by Oliver Glasner, with Uche missing out.
Some questioned whether this was punishment for his foolish punch on James Tarkowski in the 2-1 defeat at Everton, but it has now been revealed by Bobby Manzi that the exclusion was due to the timing of his return.
Christantus Uche left out after being among late returnees from international duty
The Nigeria international and Rio Cardines are said to have been “late arrivals back from international duty” – hence why they were not selected for the matchday squad against Bournemouth.
Christantus Uche and Rio Cardines have been left out of today’s matchday squad as they were late arrivals back from international duty. #CPFC
— Bobby Manzi (@BobbyManzi) October 18, 2025
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It is unclear whether that means the pair were actually late to a point where Glasner grew frustrated, or if it is simply a case of them not partaking in enough training sessions to be considered prepared for this game – but we believe it is the latter.
Nevertheless, it opened the door for Romain Esse to return to the squad after spending a few weeks with the U21 side – having been dropped following a poor display in the Carabao Cup win over Millwall.
The Crystal Palace No.21 has shown a tremendous attitude since the setback, scoring and assisting goals for the U21 side while also earning a spot in the England U21 squad too, so he deserved his place on the bench against Bournemouth.
Chris Richards also returned late
Glasner actually hinted he would be leaving a few players out when speaking in his press conference on Friday, revealing that Chris Richards – who impressed for the USMNT – was another who only returned to Copers Cope on Thursday.
The Austrian said: “A few, like Chris Richards, Walter Benitez, Rio Cardines and Uche, they just came back yesterday (Thursday). They had their only training today, but we have a great mood here at the training ground.”
Photo by Andrew Wevers/USSF/Getty Images
The United States international therefore deserves credit for getting himself ready to start this match with so little preparation, although it was not exactly his best performance as Bournemouth scored twice in the opening 45 minutes.
With three more games to come in the next eight days, fatigue could well start to set in at Selhurst Park.
