MATCH FACTS
- Date – 7th April 2018
- Venue – Vitality Stadium
- Attendance – 10,730
- Referee – Jonathan Moss
- Bookings – Francis, Gosling, Tomkins, Cabaye
- Goals – Milivojevic (47), Mousset (65), Zaha (75), King (89)
- Star Eagle -Wilfried Zaha (8.4)
TEB VERDICT
The result on the South Coast feels like another match that Palace should have earned all three points from. Much like the reverse fixture at Selhurst and the draw with Everton earlier in the season, the Eagles put in a very good performance and were unfortunate. However, being unfortunate is not good enough at this level and boss Roy Hodgson will hope his side can keep these hard fought performances going but with a tighter defence as this likely ensure a stay in the Premier League.
PLAYER RATINGS (courtesy of Who Scored)
13 WAYNE HENNESSEY (6.3) – Another good performance from Palace’s number one after making a number of very decent saves to keep the hosts at bay.
29 AARON WAN-BISSAKA (6.9) – Worked hard for the majority of the game but made a rookie mistake to lose Josh King late on who ended up getting the equaliser.
5 JAMES TOMKINS (7.2) – Usually solid in defence but looked slightly shaky. Poor clearance led to Bournemouth’s first goal.
12 MAMADOU SAKHO (7.1) – Hasn’t been the player we saw when he was on loan at Palace as he tends to loose concentration easily. Needs to step up his game.
3 PATRICK VAN AANHOLT (6.5) – Overall, a decent performance from the Dutch international however he should have done better when one on one with Asmir Begovic.
28 LUKA MILIVOJEVIC (7.9) – Must be the first name on Hodgson’s team sheet every week by now. The Serbian has been fantastic in recent weeks and scored that picturesque free kick to put Palace ahead.
7 YOHAN CABAYE (7.1) – Does such a crucial job for Palace in our midfield which allows others to get forward. His passing, tackling and distribution is top quality. Give the man a lifetime contract.
18 JAMES MCARTHUR (7.0) – The Scottish powerhouse is everywhere and proved this again at the Vitality Stadium. Had a chance early on to open the scoring but couldn’t find the net.
8 RUBEN LOFTUS-CHEEK (6.6) – Hasn’t made the impact most Palace fans thought he would after returning from his injury. Seemed to play out wide against the cherries which isn’t his natural position. Hodgson may get more out of him is he places him more centrally.
10 ANDROS TOWNSEND (7.4) – Played on the front foot and put pressure on the hosts which seemed to pay off when he managed to win possession high up the pitch. Worked hard yet again.
11 WILFRIED ZAHA (8.4) – A much better performance compared to those in previous matches where he hasn’t looked up for it. Made all the difference for Palace which his skill and ability to beat his man. Scored a brilliant goal to put Palace 2-1 up. Deserved his man of the match award.
Unused substitutes: 16 Diego CAVALIERI, 23 Pape SOUARE, 34 Martin KELLY, 24 Timothy FOSU-MENSAH, 44 Jairo RIEDEWALD, 14 Lee CHUNG-YONG, 37 James Daly
WHAT THE MANAGERS SAID (courtesy of BBC Sport)
EDDIE HOWE: “There’s never a dull moment. It’s not good for my health but I’m sure it’s the same for the supporters as well; edge-of-your-seat stuff. We’re indebted to our goalkeeper. We waited for that chance at the end and thankfully it came to Josh. It’s not the three points that we wanted but we stopped Palace winning. It’s another point closer to where we want to be. Two defeats in 14 at this level is incredible.”
ROY HODGSON: “It is frustrating when you play as well as that and don’t win the game. The fact is they are in a happy position and they could afford to throw players forward. As a result, you do know you’ll be under pressure so it’s important you avoid those mistakes and take advantage of the counter-attack but we made the mistake and they got the goal. It’s very important that the players now believe in themselves and they have to be strong mentally. It is not a fair game. It is what it is. All you can do is react to the game. We have to make certain that we produce the performances we did today.”
MATCH STATISTICS
The Who Scored man of the match was Wilfried Zaha (8.4) and rightly so. The Ivory Coast international had the most shots (4) and dribbles (4) in the game while Aaron Wan-Bissaka (4) topped the tackles chart.
AFC BOURNEMOUTH
- Team rating: 6.85
- Total shots: 20
- Shots on target: 5
- Possession: 53%
- Pass success: 80%
- Dribbles: 7
- Aerials won: 17
- Tackles: 7
- Corners: 11
- Dispossessed: 3
CRYSTAL PALACE
- Team rating: 7.13
- Total shots: 13
- Shots on target: 6
- Possession: 47%
- Pass success: 80%
- Dribbles: 8
- Aerials won: 15
- Tackles: 15
- Corners: 3
- Dispossessed: 3
POSITION IN THE TABLE
Palace are 17th in the Premier League with 31 points from 33 games, three points ahead of Southampton in 18th and a point behind Swansea City and Huddersfield Town in 15th and 16th respectively.
NEXT THREE FIXTURES
- 14/04/2018 Brighton (h)
- 21/04/2018 Watford (a)
- 28/04/2018 Leicester City (h)
