The Eagles were once again found wanting again late in a game as the visitors pushed on to score an injury time equaliser to prevent Oliver Glasner overseeing a second home win in succession.
MATCH INFORMATION
- 3pm – 9th March 2024
- Crystal Palace 1-1 Luton Town
- Selhurst Park, Holmesdale Road, London SE25 6PU
PLAYER RATINGS
1 |
Sam JOHNSTONE |
6.1 |
2 |
Joel WARD © |
6.3 |
16 |
Joachim ANDERSEN |
7.1 |
26 |
Chris RICHARDS |
6.8 |
3 |
Tyrick MITCHELL |
7.0 |
12 |
Daniel NUMOZ |
7.0 |
20 |
Adam WHARTON (19 Will HUGHES 81 mins) |
6.8 (6.0) |
8 |
Jefferson LERMA |
7.2 |
10 |
Eberechi EZE |
7.2 |
9 |
Jordan AYEW (29 Naouirou AHAMADA 70 mins) |
6.6 (6.0) |
14 |
Jean-Philippe MATETA (22 Odsonne EDOUARD 81 mins) |
7.5 (6.3) |
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES – 5 James TOMKINS, 17 Nathaniel CLYNE, 30 Dean HENDERSON, 44 Jairo RIEDEWALD, 48 Luke PLANGE, 51 Kaden RODNEY, 52 David OZOH
OPPOSITION LINE-UP
24 |
Thomas KAMINSKI |
6.7 |
16 |
Reece BURKE |
6.6 |
15 |
Teden MENGI (27 Daiki HASHIOKA 62 mins) |
6.3 (6.3) |
2 |
Gabriel OSHO (10 Cauley WOODROW 81 mins) |
6.5 (7.2) |
12 |
Issa KABORE |
6.6 |
18 |
Jordan CLARK (8 Luke BERRY 87 mins) |
5.9 (6.2) |
6 |
Ross BARKLEY |
6.8 |
45 |
Alfie DOUGHTY |
6.2 |
7 |
Chiedozie OGBENE (30 Andros TOWNSEND 87 mins) |
5.9 (6.7) |
14 |
Tahith CHONG (43 Zak NELSON 88 mins) |
6.5 (6.1) |
9 |
Carlton MORRIS |
6.3 |
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES – 1 James Shea, 17 Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu, 23 Tim Krul, 44 Alex Piesold
TEB VERDICT
Plenty of goo work and hard work against a tough opponent was let down by once again not having the confidence or the knowhow to see out a game that was pretty much won. There were plenty of chances to have put the Eagles clear long before that last ditch equaliser, but this will give Oliver Glasner plenty to think about.
After three games in charge, the Austrian has a full house – a win, a loss and a draw, and each of them will give him a lot to work with in the coming weeks, and before the trip to Forest on Easter weekend.
There were a number of positive signs though in a game that was almost seen as job done – Daniel Munez and Adam Wharton are absolute ballers, Joachim Andersen strong at the back after a lot of criticism of late, and Jean-Philippe Mateta playing the role that we all hoped he could.
The important thing about this game was not to lose and give the visitors impetus, but the draw keeps them at arm’s length.
A trip to Spain next week in the absence of a game could much needed bonding time for squad and the staff.
BOB’S POINT OF VIEW
Bob White was a coach at Palace under the tenure of Steve Coppell and Alan Smith and will be sharing his point of view each week in our review article.
“From the outset it felt like it was a must not lose game but one where a win would see us within sight of safety.
The first half performance saw us play with the Glasner tactical influence on display. High intensity, pressing in the right areas and creating some decent opportunities through consistent pressure. This was captured perfectly by our goal, Munoz pressing high followed by a clever finish by Mateta.
Our intensity levels dropped in the second half allowing Luton to gain in confidence and improve markedly as the half progressed. To compound matters further we certainly looked weaker as a team when both Wharton and Ayew were substituted.
We were ultimately punished by our usual bad habit of conceding deep into a game. The question remain, is it down to fitness level and/or lack of concentration. Maybe a combination of both.
The other concern for me was our inability to stop crosses at source against a team whose main threat is from balls into the box. I’m sure Glasner must have emphasised that during preparation this week. He will be disappointed as the rest of us to concede such a simple goal.
Luton’s gutsy performance in the second half arguably deserved a share of the points giving them further hope of survival. Glasner and his staff now have three weeks to work with our squad. It will be like a mini pre-season.
We need to focus on competing with the intensity and defensive qualities required to improve our performances from the first to the final whistle. Too many points dropped in the final quarter of the game this season.
We still require a minimum seven points to ensure our Premier League status. A win at Forest in our next game would go a long way towards achieving that.
POST GAME QUOTES
SAM JOHNSTONE
“It’s frustrating, gutting to concede like that at the end of the game when we could have had three points. But we’ve got one, it was always going to be tough game against Luton but it’s frustrating. We had some good chances and their goalie made couple of great saves. At 1-0 there’s always a risk of a goal at the end. Frustrating but we played well, and apart from goal we have to be happy with how we played.”
OLIVER GLASNER
“The draw hurts because I think we deserved the win. We didn’t decide the game where we could decide it, we had lots of opportunities. In this one situation [for the Luton goal] we were too passive, we didn’t have pressure on the ball. Sometimes you have to feel the hurt and this is what we will do.”
This was the only situation in added time from Luton. Before that we played most of [added time] in their half. You cannot deny we conceded many goals late in the game, maybe this is deep in the mind of the players but we will get it out. This was our third game together. I’m full of hope and belief in this team.”
ROB EDWARDS
“I wouldn’t say a turning point but hopefully a springboard. We’re up against it at the moment. I know there are a number of clubs suffering injuries but to lose two centre-backs in the game, we’ve got a lot of square pegs in round holds out there by the end. To get a result, it’s huge.
“We came here to try to win the game. I don’t think we deserved to. But I don’t think we deserved to lose with everything going against us at the moment. I’m just disappointed we didn’t create more. But we found a way to score and get something from the game. If you’d offered me a point at the beginning of the game I’d probably have said no but with how it went it’s a good feeling.”
MATCH STATISTICS
Star Man |
Jean-Philippe MATETA (7.5) |
Goals |
Jean-Philippe MATETA (11), Cauley WOODROW (90+5) |
Assists |
Daniel MUNOZ (11), Andros TOWNSEND (90+5) |
Most shots |
Eberechi EZE (6) |
Most tackles |
Tyrick MITCHELL (5) |
Most dribbles |
Tahith CHONG, Alfie DOUGHTY (3) |
Team rating |
6.71 – 6.43 |
Total shots |
21 – 8 |
Shots on target |
4 – 2 |
Yellow cards |
Issa KABORE (27), Eberechi EZE (39), Reece BURKE (57), Daniel MUNOZ (86), Luke BERRY (91) |
Red cards |
None |
Possession |
50.4% – 49.6% |
Pass success |
79% – 79% |
Passes |
427 – 404 |
Dribbles |
6 – 11 |
Aerials won |
14 – 15 |
Tackles |
19 – 12 |
Fouls |
20 – 11 |
Corners |
8 – 6 |
Saves |
1 – 3 |
Dispossessed |
11 – 11 |
POSITION IN THE TABLE (at the final whistle)
POS |
TEAM |
W |
D |
L |
GD |
PTS |
13 |
Bournemouth |
8 |
8 |
11 |
-12 |
32 |
14 |
Crystal Palace |
7 |
8 |
13 |
-15 |
29 |
15 |
Brentford |
7 |
5 |
15 |
-11 |
26 |
UPCOMING FIXTURES
30/03/24 Nottingham Forest (a) – Premier League 3pm
02/04/24 Bournemouth (a) – Premier League 7.45pm
06/04/24 Manchester City (h) – Premier League 12.30pm