Eagles fade away as Man United cash in on Glasner men's Euro hangover
- By Yann Tear at Selhurst Park
- 12 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Premier League
Crystal Palace (1) 1 Mateta pen 32
Manchester United (0) 2 Zirkzee 54, Mount 65
The Eagles missed a chance to move up to fourth in the Premier League as they squandered a half-time lead before going on to record a first home defeat in the competition.
Despite a bright start, energy levels dropped just enough to allow United a way back into the contest - and the obvious theory is that the extra game they had to play three days ago in Strasbourg had taken a toll.
Defeat in that game also probably didn't help. What also didn't help was a first-half injury to Ismaila Sarr which deprived OLiver Glasner's men of pace and their usual outlet for forays into enemy territory.
At a Selhurst bathed in sunshine, the Eagles survived an early scare when Casemiro almost poked home - Dean Henderson's raised arm thwarting the Brazilian - and were soon working the United defence and forcing errors.
Jean-Philippe Mateta should have profited from one opening but slid a shot wide with only Senne Lemmens to beat in the United goal. Adam Wharton and Daichi Kamada both hit the target but were denied by the United keeper. Yeremi Pino had a far post shot blocked by Leny Yoro.
Yoro was good then but gave away a penalty on 32 minutes, bringing down Mateta after the Frenchman had been found by Wharton's threaded pass. Mateta himself put away the spot kick, sending Lammens the wrong way - not once but twice.
He was asked to repeat his initial success because replays showed his first kick struck his standing foot and VAR alerted ref Rob Jones. A rule change in the summer meant accidental double touches require a penalty to be retaken.
Palace were looking comfortable but surrendered the initiative in tame fashion when Joshua Zirkzee was allowed to turn inside the box and fire across Henderson into the far corner from a tight angle.
And it got worse for them not long after when a free-kick tapped to Mason Mount saw the ex-Chelsea player arrow a low shot past Henderson's right hand - the defensive wall allowing the shot to pass underneath the coterie of bodies.
Palace fans will be hoping their side can rediscover some zest in their Wednesday night match at Burnley, which precedes next Sunday's derby with Fulham at Craven Cottage.
Eagles: (3-4-2-1) Henderson - Richards, Lacroix, Guehi - Munoz, Wharton (Hughes 78), Kamada (Lerma 85), Mitchell (Devenny 85) - Sarr (Nketiah 38), Pino (Uche 78) - Mateta
United: (3-4-2-1) Lammens - Yoro (Mazrouai 55), de Ligt, Shaw (Martinez 82) - Diallo (Dorgu 91), Casemiro, Bruno Fernandes, Dalot - Mbeumo (Mainoo 91), Mount - Zirkzee
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