Match Facts
- Date – 30th January 2016
- Venue – Selhurst Park
- Attendance – 17,062
- Referee – Mark Clattenburg
- Bookings – Puncheon, Wollscheid, Wilson
- Goals – Zaha (17)
- Star Eagle – Wilfried Zaha (8)
Match Review
If you are going to be as vain as to publicly admit visiting the barbers shop every day then you better be sure to have the substance to back up the hairstyle.
With an 18th minute goal that sent Palace through to the FA Cup fifth round, Wilfried Zaha suggested he does.
The winger– who this week sent the self obsession meter into overdrive by posting a pouting picture of himself online captioned ‘New trim every day,’ – was praised by his manager Alan Pardew after a man of the match performance.
Pardew has been vocal about his belief that the FA Cup deserves to be shown more respect, earlier this month calling for the third round to be moved away from the crowded festive period to allow teams to pay the competition more attention.
Perhaps his personal history, scoring the decisive goal in Palace’s rip roaring 4-3 1990 FA Cup semi-final win over Liverpool accounts for his fondness.
This was no such classic but Pardew did field just about his strongest side making just two changes from the team which lost 3-1 to Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
Contrastingly, Mark Hughes made eight changes to the Stoke team which suffered a heartbreaking loss to Liverpool on penalties in the League Cup semi-final on Tuesday, although that could be chalked up to physical and emotional fatigue among the potters’ ranks rather than a slight on the cup.
Zaha proved a handful for the visitors’ second string all afternoon and made the breakthrough in the 18th minute. The 23-year-old was fed the ball by Yohan Cabaye and with feet that would be at home on any dance floor confounded Stephen Ireland and Marc Wilson.
He turned cutely in the box and slotted the ball between Jakob Haugaard’s legs. It was Zaha’s fifth goal of the season in all competitions but his part in helping Palace exceed expectations has been more significant than his scoring tally. While yet to prove his consistency, his talent is beyond dispute.
Stoke were lucky not to lose a man when Marc Wilson brought down a rampaging Fraizer Campbell. Palace fans called for his dismissal and they had fair reason to believe it was a goalscoring opportunity and Wilson was probably the last defender.
They let their feelings be known when Mark Clattenburg decided a yellow card was sufficient punishment.
Indeed the high profile referee did not gain many admirers at Selhurst Park, inducing a fulsome chorus of ‘It’s all about you!’ when he booked Jason Puncheon for dissent minutes later after the forward complained about him not taking action for a foul on Cabaye.
The game was more open in the second half but Palace edged it in most areas. Chung-yong Lee linked well with Jason Puncheon on the edge of the Stoke penalty area but a shot from Frazier Campbell, who has not scored against a Premier League defence since Valentines Day last year, sailed high over the Potters crossbar.
Zaha continued to make himself a nuisance, playing a superb ball through to Scott Dann who was waiting in the six yard box but raised his arms in frustration believing he had been illegally jostled off the ball. Moments later Zaha forced Haugaard to bend the ball around his post with a tight angled shot.
Player Ratings
- Wayne Hennessey (7) – Stood up to the task well with straightforward saves. One excellent stop at the near post.
- Joel Ward (7.5) – A recent step up from recent showings with a solid display both defensively and offensively.
- Scott Dann (7) – No nonsense in the heart of the defence as we have come to expect.
- Damien Delaney (7) – The second half of our staunch centre back pairing influential in achieving a clean sheet.
- Pape Souare (7) – Becoming a little more conistent, put in a terrific cross for Campbell which almost led to a goal.
- Joe Ledley (6) – Solid in the first half before being replaced by Jordon Mutch (6) on 45 minutes due to injury. The former QPR man slotted in well next to Jedinak in the middle.
- Yohan Cabaye (7) – Influenced the first half for Palace until being forced off after a tough challenge. Replaced by Mile Jedinak (6) on 45 minutes who rolled back the years with some surging runs and tough tackling.
- Jason Puncheon (7) – A better performance than of late for one of our own who appears to be saving them for the cup. Played a little more advanced than normal and supported Campbell well.
- Chung-yong Lee (7) – Excellent game for the South Korean, protecting and using the ball well and getting stuck in when required.
- Wilfried Zaha (8) – Match winner and an all round great match for the skillful wide man who gave yet another visiting defence a torrid time. An outside bet for the Euros?
- Frazier Campbell (7) – A hard working performance from the much criticised striker. Unlucky not to score, did everything right but thwarted by the keeper. Replaced by Marouane Chamakh (6) on 81 minutes who looked lively for the short time he had to make an impression.
Unused substitutes – Julian Speroni, Adrian Mariappa, Brede Hangeland, Martin Kelly
Match Statistics
- Total shots: 9-9
- Shots on target: 2-3
- Possession: 52% – 42%
- Corners: 5-4
- Fouls: 8-18
