Oliver Glasner mentioned that he had contemplated deploying full back Nathaniel Clyne as an emergency striker in Crystal Palace’s Carabao Cup match against Millwall because of a shortage of options.

Crystal Palace came through their third round tie on penalties on Tuesday night, following a 1-1 draw against the Championship side.

Millwall had forced penalties with a stoppage time header from Ryan Leonard, whose effort cancelled out Chris Richards’ opener for the Eagles.

After the match, Glasner was questioned about a late-game miss by Jean-Philippe Mateta, who sent the ball wide from close range despite being the top scorer last season.

Glasner defended Mateta, attributing the miss to fatigue, and highlighted the limited substitutes’ bench by revealing that 34-year-old Clyne was briefly considered as an unconventional striker.

Oliver Glasner suggested he nearly played Nathaniel Clyne up front amid a lack of options

Glasner claimed the full back was under consideration due to Crystal Palace’s stretched squad

Young full back Rio Cardines and midfielder Kaden Rodney were cited as other potential options from the bench. 

‘I think JP honestly needs a break; you saw his chance was just fatigue from playing every game, every minute,’ Glasner said.

‘In the second half, I looked who could play striker: Clyne, Cardines, or Rodney.

‘But it is what it is, I can’t complain about it.

‘At the moment it is more fighting than playing, we are fighting for the points rather than playing for the points.

‘There will be moments where we will play better, have better performances and win.

He remarked, ‘Remaining unbeaten is crucial for us. Many teams would be thrilled to be unbeaten by September 16, and we are among them.’

Glasner’s comment comes with Crystal Palace having stretched their unbeaten run to 16 competitive matches, dating back to mid-April.

The Eagles boss said a late miss by Jean-Philippe Mateta was as a consequence of fatigue

Crystal Palace secured a penalty shoot-out win over Millwall to advance in the Carabao Cup

This unbeaten streak includes eight games at the end of the previous season, featuring the FA Cup final victory, and spans the Community Shield, Premier League, Conference League, and currently the Carabao Cup.

Palace has been struggling with injuries early in the season, with players like Eddie Nketiah, Cheick Doucouré, Adam Wharton, and Ismaïla Sarr unavailable.

Glasner had reportedly been unhappy during the transfer window as Palace struggled to strengthen his squad, with the Eagles also sanctioning the £60m sale of Eberechi Eze to Arsenal.

Benitez, Borna Sosa, Yeremy Pino and Jaydee Canvot were among the additions Palace made over the summer.

Glasner last week denied claims he had threatened to quit the club over the potential deadline day sale of captain Marc Guehi, with the centre back’s proposed move to Liverpool eventually collapsing.

Speaking after the Carabao Cup win over Millwall, Glasner also stressed that £14.5m January signing Romain Esse must start to perform, after the 20-year-old was hauled off at half-time.  

Glasner admitted Romain Esse must start performing after he was taken off at half-time

‘I don’t want to talk about a single player, but if you sub someone at half-time you are not pleased with his performance,’ Glasner said.

‘It’s simple, football is not so difficult. When you get a chance, you have to perform and show you can help the team win the game.

‘If I have a feeling a player can help the team win a game, he gets many minutes. If I get the feeling a player doesn’t help a team win the game, he doesn’t get many minutes.

‘He’s a nice guy, I like him as a person. But I’m not being paid to be a nice person, I’m being paid to win games. It’s up to the player to improve.’