Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson praised the commitment of centre-back Mamadou Sakho after he made his return from injury at Bournemouth on Tuesday.
The former Liverpool defender only returned to training on Friday, after a hamstring issue kept him sidelined for close to two months, but he featured off the bench in the Carabao Cup second-round tie.
With Gary Cahill and James Tomkins still out, the cameo for the 30-year-old was a major boost for the Eagles ahead of this weekend’s Premier League trip to Manchester United.
“He played very little football in the last season,” Hodgson said of Sakho.
“But he was on the pitch for a long time (against Bournemouth) after doing two training sessions, which is quite incredible.
“The medical staff were very reticent to allow him play, they thought it was too soon and it wasn’t a good idea.
“I spoke to him and he thought that, as long as he wasn’t thrown into the deep end, he could play a part in the game and he did, so that’s another bonus for me.”
“The benefit for us was the minutes and the competitive level of the game,” Hodgson added.
“Michy played 90 minutes for Belgium but got thrown in there and hadn’t done a lot of training with Chelsea so he needed it.
“Ebere Eze definitely needed it, Max Meyer needed it and Luka definitely needed it.
“Luka when he came back from Serbia couldn’t train with us and he was injured for the last part of the season, so for him that is the first 90 minutes in a long time.”
David Brooks was the Cherries’ star performer and is one of several players at the club linked with a transfer in the wake of their relegation.
New boss Jason Tindall said: “We have always got good players linked with different clubs and until someone tells me otherwise, they are still a Bournemouth player.
“And I am delighted to have as many of my best players available to me as possible.”
