Leicester City Under-21s match abandoned after Will Alves goal and rare Danny Ward start

Will Alves scored for Leicester City Under-21s before the match was abandoned

Leicester City Under-21s’ fixture against Crystal Palace was abandoned on Monday night after a serious injury to the visitors’ defender Joe Sheridan.

With 86 minutes played and the score at 1-1 at City’s Seagrave training base, Sheridan jumped for a header and sustained an injury as he landed. He required prolonged medical treatment before being taken to hospital by a dedicated ambulance crew. Palace have said they will provide an update on the 20-year-old when they can.

With no ambulance then at the ground, the remainder of the game could not be played, forcing an abandonment. A decision over the status of the fixture will be made in due course, Palace said, albeit the Premier League’s official site has recorded the game as a draw.

The visitors’ had taken the lead midway through the first half thanks to striker Luke Plange but Will Alves equalised for City six minutes before half-time. It was the second time Alves had scored for the Under-21s this season, but on both occasions the match has been abandoned.

Back in November, Alves scored in his comeback game against Newcastle, but a medical emergency involving a member of City’s staff just before half-time saw the match called off. The staff member was taken to hospital and after examinations was released to recover at home.

On Monday, Alves was playing in a strong City line-up that included goalkeeper Danny Ward. The Wales international has not played a senior competitive match for City this season and was turning out for the Under-21s for the first time. He was perhaps looking to get minutes ahead of his nation’s Euro 2024 play-offs next month.

Also in the City line-up were Wanya Marcal, Arjan Raikhy and Brandon Cover, while Tawanda Maswanhise came off the bench. All four have played senior matches for City since the turn of the year.

If the 1-1 scoreline is finalised, it moves City up one place to 23rd in the 26-team Premier League 2 table. The top 16 qualify for the end-of-season play-offs, with City seven points off the pace with seven matches remaining.