As Joel Ward pulled up with a hamstring injury in the first half at the Etihad Stadium, Roy Hodgson looked to the Crystal Palace bench knowing he would have to delve further into his already depleted squad.
Hodgson beckoned David Ozoh to get warmed up, and soon the 18-year-old was thrown into the fray against Manchester City.
Injuries have ravaged Hodgson’s squad, and his predilection for trusting experienced players saw him name two right-backs, Ward and Nathaniel Clyne, in his starting lineup.
It is less than two months since Hodgson drew much criticism for saying Palace youngsters Matheus Franca, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi and Naouirou Ahamada had made his team “much weaker” in a defeat by Tottenham in October.
Hodgson has apologised on two separate occasions for those comments, yet he has remained reticent to trust young players in the weeks since.
But at the Etihad he gave Ozoh his chance and the England Under-18 international did not disappoint.
Ozoh misplaced just one of his 11 passes, and slotted into a makeshift midfield comprising himself, Jairo Riedewald and Chris Richards, a centre-back by trade.
Afterwards, Hodgson looked ahead to the January transfer window, saying: “We need a central midfield player. If I have to move [Richards] to the back, we’ll have a gap there.”
With Cheick Doucoure out for the season, Palace clearly do need to sign a midfielder. But in the meantime, Ozoh deserves more minutes.
Previously an attacker, he has become an all-action midfielder in recent years, technically capable as well as a physical presence. He showed that while up against the likes of Rodri and Bernardo Silva.
Ozoh, who was born in Valencia but moved to England at a young age, joined the Palace academy at the age of eight.
This month marks a year since he started training regularly with the Eagles’ first team, when he was first promoted by Hodgson’s predecessor Patrick Vieira.
Under Vieira, in last season’s goalless draw with Newcastle in January, Ozoh became the club’s youngest-ever Premier League player, aged 17, eight months and 15 days.
"I thought he was excellent"
Saturday’s 2-2 comeback draw against City was Ozoh’s fourth appearance of the season, following cameos against Newcastle and Liverpool in the Premier League and 10 minutes of action at the end of September’s heavy defeat by Manchester United in the Carabao Cup.
“People playing in that game had no Premier League experience at all”, Hodgson said. “We had a bench of academy players and no real seniors to put on to help us out.
“David Ozoh came on reasonably early. I thought he was excellent.”
Ozoh has been dividing his time between the Palace first team and the Under-21s.
The question is whether he can expect more game time under Hodgson in the second half of the season. In the chances he has been given, he has shown he deserves to be trusted.
