In what was one of the toughest afternoons in many a campaign, Brighton swept aside the Eagles with a devastating victory. Outfought, outpaced and punished, Palace never found an answer as the hosts grabbed the bragging rights in emphatic fashion.
MATCH INFORMATION
| 2pm – 18 October 2026 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion 5-0 Crystal Palace |
| Premier League |
| American Express Stadium |
OFFICIALS
| Referee | Robert Jones |
| VAR | Paul Howard |
| Assistant Referees | Timothy Wood, Bhupinder Gill |
| Fourth Official | Samual Barrott |
| Assistant VAR | Wade Smith |
PLAYER RATINGS
Crystal Palace
| 44 | Walter BENITEZ | 5.7 |
| 25 | Anan KHALAILI | 6.1 |
| 3 | Tyrick MITCHELL | 6.1 |
| 21 | Honest AHANOR | 5.7 |
| 26 | Chris RICHARDS | 6.3 |
| 6 | Jaydee CANVOT | 5.3 |
| 23 | Quinten TIMBER | 5.6 |
| 20 | Adam WHARTON | 5.7 |
| 18 | Daichi KAMADA | 5.9 |
| 10 | Yeremy PINO | 5.6 |
| 22 | Jorgen Strand LARSEN | 5.7 |
| 7 | Ismaila SARR | – |
| 8 | Jefferson LERMA (AHANOR 53 mins) | 6.5 |
| 9 | Eddie NKETIAH (PINO 61 mins) | 5.9 |
| 11 | Dwight MCNEIL (TIMBER 46 mins) | 5.9 |
| 14 | Jean-Philippe MATETA (LARSEN 61 mins) | 6.5 |
| 19 | Will HUGHES (KAMADA 81 mins) | 5.9 |
| 24 | Dario OSORIO | – |
| 30 | Oscar MINGUEZA | – |
| 31 | Remi MATTHEWS | – |
Brighton & Hove Albion
| 1 | Bart VERBRUGGEN | 7.1 |
| 21 | Olivier BOSCAGLI | 7.7 |
| 5 | Lewis DUNK | 7.8 |
| 44 | Luka VUSKOVIC | 8.4 |
| 24 | Ferdi KADIOGLU | 7.2 |
| 14 | Chema ANDRES | 7.1 |
| 13 | Pascal GROSS | 6.7 |
| 29 | Maxim De CUYPER | 7.9 |
| 26 | Yasin AYARI | 7.8 |
| 25 | Diego GOMEZ | 8.2 |
| 19 | Charalampos KOSTOULAS | 8.8 |
| 3 | Jaouen HADJAM (BOSCAGLI 81 mins) | 6.1 |
| 8 | Jack HINSHELWOOD (GROSS 71 mins) | 7.0 |
| 10 | Georginio RUTTER (KOSTOULAS 71 mins) | 6.2 |
| 15 | Ibrahim OSMAN | – |
| 20 | COSTINHA | – |
| 23 | Jason STEELE | – |
| 30 | Malick SVOBODA (DUNK 90 mins) | 6.2 |
| 33 | Matt O’REILLY | – |
| 35 | Michael YALCOUYE (AYARI 81 mins) | 6.3 |
POST GAME QUOTES
PIERRE SAGE
“I’m frustrated because we didn’t compete. I must prepare the team better, give them more solutions, give them confidence and the required aggression. I’m responsible for the whole team. When the team is losing it’s my fault.
We spoke about the history of this fixture and we didn’t do the job in a good way. We must apologise to the fans because they deserve so much better than we gave them. I’m really sorry for that, but I want to show them that we are able to come back and to show our real face because that was not us.”
ADAM WHARTON
“We could not have started any worse to be honest. It was nowhere near enough, from every single one of us. When you put yourself in that position, it’s never going to be easy. We were too slow from the start.
“We have just got to analyse it and look at everything we can do to get better. We can’t dwell on it for too long. It’s terrible. The fans deserve better. This club can’t be having a result like this. We need to work hard, focus, and put it right.”
MATCH STATISTICS
| Star Man | Charalampos KOSTOULAS (8.8) |
| Goals | Jaydee CANVOT (4 OG), Diego GOMEZ (7), Yasin AYARI (10), Charalampos KOSTOULAS (49), Jack HINSHELWOOD (84) |
| Assists | Olivier BOSCAGLI (7), Charalampos KOSTOULAS (10) |
| Most shots | Charalampos KOSTOULAS, Yasin AYARI (4) |
| Most tackles | Chema ANDRES (5) |
| Most dribbles | Charalampos KOSTOULAS, Diego GOMEZ (3) |
| Team rating | 7.28 – 5.91 |
| Total shots | 17 – 5 |
| Shots on target | 9 – 1 |
| Yellow cards | Pascal GROSS (29), Daichi KAMADA (51), Chema ANDRES (64) |
| Red cards | None |
| Possession | 57.2% – 42.8% |
| Pass success | 85% – 78% |
| Passes | 516 – 384 |
| Dribbles | 8 – 6 |
| Aerials won | 13 – 11 |
| Tackles | 12 – 12 |
| Fouls | 13 – 11 |
| Corners | 8 – 5 |
| Saves | 1 – 5 |
| Dispossessed | 5 – 6 |
TEB VERDICT
If recent results had eased the pressure around Selhurst Park, this defeat brought it crashing back with interest. Palace weren’t just beaten, they were comprehensively outplayed, outfought and out-thought from the very first whistle to the last.
Brighton set the tempo, dominated the key battles and exposed Palace’s weaknesses with ruthless efficiency. The Eagles offered little resistance defensively and even less threat going forward, leaving supporters frustrated by both the manner and the magnitude of the defeat.
In a fixture where commitment and intensity are the minimum requirements, Palace fell short on both counts.
Defeats in this fixture are always painful, but a significant loss such as this one carry wider consequences. The result will inevitably increase the scrutiny on the management team and raises questions about Palace’s direction, consistency and ability to compete. There is no hiding place after a result of this nature.
This was far more than just a bad day at the office. It was a stark reminder that recent progress can quickly be forgotten when performances drop below the required standard, particularly the in defensive areas which just have not improved week on week.
The challenge now is not only to recover the points lost, but to restore belief among the fans who were left enduring a journey home after one of the club’s most sobering defeats against Brighton in recent memory.
LEAGUE POSITION
| P | W | D | L | GD | PTS | ||
| 13 | Manchester United | 7 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 7 |
| 14 | Crystal Palace | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | -8 | 7 |
| 15 | Bournemouth | 7 | 1 | 3 | 3 | -4 | 6 |
UPCOMING FIXTURES
| DATE | TEAM | LOCATION | COMPETITION | KICK OFF TIME |
| 22/10/2026 | Besiktas | Away | Europa League | 8pm |
| 25/10/2026 | Newcastle United | Home | Premier League | 2pm |
| 28/10/2026 | Fulham | Away | League Cup | 7.45pm |
