MATCH FACTS
- DATE – 9th March 2019
- VENUE – Selhurst Park
- CROWD – 24,972
- OFFICIAL – Craig Pawson
- CARDS – Dann, Murray, Knockaert, Montoya, Bernardo, Ryan
- GOALS – Murray (19), Milivojevic (50 pen), Knockaert (74)
- STAR EAGLE – Luka Milivojevic (7.4)
TEB VERDICT
Tough day at the office again but when will we learn not to be so predictable at home and give up points to poor teams who really should not be leaving with such a gift? This was like so many other games this season, almost repeating a handful of similar performances. It is as if we have not done our homework after home defeats to Wolves, Watford, Southampton and the draw with Cardiff. All winnable but we blew it each time, and again in this one. Defending was poor and we really did not play the way we know how.
The longer the game went, the deeper the opposition defence got which meant it was much harder to get behind them. We struggled in midfield and defence through silly mistakes and it was so disappointing to allow them to do the double over us this season. The only player that came out of that with any dignity was our young right back but one thing is clear, and that is how much we miss Mamdou Sakho. Yes, he puts our heart in mouth on some occasions but he is that glue that binds them all together.
We can bemoan some decisions in the game but we did not do ourselves any favours. Not enough to win the game yet enough not to lose against what was a poor team for the most part, the only difference was they took their two chances. The ineffectiveness of the changes left a lot to be desired but this result will sting for the rest of the week but there really is no point in sulking about it. We will more than likely still finish above them and there is a real feeling that there may well be another derby game before the season is out.
PLAYER RATINGS (courtesy of Who Scored)
31 VICENTE GUAITA (5.7) – Had very little to do on his return to the starting line up other than pick the ball out of the net twice, could do nothing for either goal
29 AARON WAN-BISSAKA (6.9) – One of the few that come out of the result with any credit, not much got past him all afternoon and pushed forward at every opportunity. Found himself further up the pitch trying to help the team in advanced areas but even he was not immune to the odd mistake.
5 JAMES TOMKINS (5.8) – Not a great game and it was his mistake which led to the opener for the visitors. Could have won a penalty on another day right on half time after being nudged in the back
6 SCOTT DANN (6.0 – BOOKED!) – Similar to Tomkins, hardly a solid display from the centre back pairing. Distribution poor and found himself lucky not to give away a penalty for a hold in the box.
3 PATRICK VAN AANHOLT (6.3) – The Dutchman has not been in great form and this is one of his worst games for the club. Infuriating that once again a full back shows a player inside rather than down the line. Basics.
18 JAMES MCARTHUR (6.4) – Worked hard but we needed much more than that from the Scot, struggled with his passing all afternoon, two particularly bad passes went astray in good positions. Replaced by 7 MAX MEYER (6.2) on 77 minutes who had little time to have an impact and was a passanger for his stint on the pitch.
4 LUKA MILIVOJEVIC (7.4 – GOAL!) – Was on the end of two early crunching challenges, the first should have been punished more than it was, but it put the Serb off his game for a while. Stepped up to score the penalty and tried to get things moving all afternoon.
15 JEFFREY SCHLUPP (6.8) – Has been in great form lately but could not live up to it, simlar to McArthur, found it difficult to find his passing range in a tight midfield.
10 ANDROS TOWNSEND (7.2 – ASSIST!) – More hard work from the winger up and down the pitch which provided a reward with the penalty. Could not find that killer pass to open up the visiting backline. Replaced by 17 CHRISTIAN BENTEKE (6.2) on 77 minutes who, like Meyer, proved inneffective for the time he was on the pitch.
11 WILFRIED ZAHA (6.6) – We all know the talent he has but just wish he would think a little more when on the ball. There were a few occassions where he could have released the ball rather than retaining it and slowing the attack down. He still had the opposition tied in knots when he did go at them but did not do it enough.
23 MICHY BATSHUAYI (6.5) – Always available and got stuck in for the cause but with the team constantly looking for Zaha, they did not take advantage of some of the good work the Belgian was doing.
Unused substitutes – 1 Julian Speroni, 2 Joel Ward, 34 Martin Kelly, 8 Cheikhou Kouyate, 14 Jordan Ayew
WHAT THE MANAGERS SAID
ROY HODGSON: “It is a very disappointing day. It was a poor performance in that we were not able to do enough with the amount of possession we had.”
CHRIS HUGHTON: “If Andone plays, you don’t know how he would have done, but Murray is someone used to this level of game and to see him back scoring is great. I don’t know if ‘bonus’ is the right word but three points here, particularly with how the second half panned out, is a big win for us.”
MATCH STATISTICS
The Who Scored man of the match was Dale Stephens (8.0) while Andros Townsend (4) had the most shots. The most tackles were made by Aaron Wan-Bissaka (8) as Andros Townsend and Wilfried Zaha (3) had the most dribbles.
- Team rating: 6.46 – 6.79
- Total shots: 15 – 4
- Shots on target: 3 – 3
- Possession: 62.8% – 37.2%
- Pass success: 82% – 72%
- Dribbles: 10 – 4
- Aerials won: 10 – 14
- Tackles: 27 – 23
- Corners: 8 – 0
- Dispossessed: 11 – 15
POSITION IN THE TABLE
Palace are 14th in the Premier League with 33 points from 30 games, level on points with Brighton & Hove Albion in 15th and a point behind Newcastle in 13th.
NEXT THREE FIXTURES
- 16/03/2019 Watford (a)
- 30/03/2019 Huddersfield (h)
- 06/04/2019 Newcastle United (a)
