'Handing in a transfer request' - Crystal Palace fans explode over Romain Esse announcement
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Credit: Imago / Hasan Karim - Breaking Media
Harri Burton
Thu 28 August 2025 16:41, UK
Crystal Palace supporters are furious with Oliver Glasner’s treatment of Romain Esse ahead of facing Fredrikstad.
The 20-year-old winger arrived from Millwall during the winter transfer window last season and has since made 10 appearances across all competitions, with only one of them being a start.
He grabbed an assist during Palace’s 4-2 Premier League win over Wolves in May, though his involvement has been extremely limited during the 2025/26 campaign so far.
Fans have been rather disappointed by his lack of minutes since his arrival from the Den, understandably, as the player arrived on a whopping £14.5million deal in January [The Standard].
Following Eberechi Eze’s stunning move to Arsenal, snubbing Tottenham for their London rivals, supporters were hoping for more first-team minutes for the youngster.
That has not been the case.
The Eagles have the chance to make history on Thursday, 28 August, when taking on Fredrikstad in their Europa Conference League second-leg tie, having taken a 1-0 lead through Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Glasner’s side absolutely dominated at Selhurst Park, but were only able to walk away with a single-goal lead.
That should all change on Thursday, but with no help from Esse.
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Mateta is joined by Ismaila Sarr and Daichi Kamada in attack, with Daniel Munoz and Borna Sosa occupying the wide positions, leaving no space for the former Millwall gem.
He will be stuck on the bench yet again, and supporters have flocked onto social media to make their feelings known over the disappointing selection in Norway.
One supporter went as far as telling the 20-year-old to “hand in a transfer request”, with another suggesting that the game would have been a “perfect” opportunity for him to shine.
A third said, rather dishearteningly, that Esse will “never see the starting XI ever”, with the majority of fans desperate for the young winger to show his tricks on the pitch, rather than just in training and in small bursts.
During his first six months of the 2024/25 season, still with the Lions, the talented youngster notched five goals and an assist in 26 games, but since leaving, he has only been able to notch two goal contributions.