Five things we loved from Palace’s win against Spurs
Crystal Palace stormed to victory at Selhurst Park on Sunday afternoon – so here are five things we loved from a sensational 90 minutes and beyond…
Under pressure
Palace’s pressing against Tottenham was first class, with their 21 high turnovers the second-highest of any side in a single Premier League game this season.
The winning goal came from Palace winning the ball back by the corner flag after forcing Spurs into the error, and then finishing with aplomb.
After the Eagles overran some of the best teams in the country at the end of last season, what a sight it was to see the red and blue hassling, harrying and pouring forwards once again.
To the max
There was no doubting how much this result meant to the players, and none more so than Maxence Lacroix, who put in a warriors performance to keep a clean sheet – and earn the Player of the Match award in the process.
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Our No. 5 was straight across to the fans at full-time, pumping his fists towards the Holmesdale Road End and jumping up and down.
"It feels unbelievable," he told Palace TV after the game. "I'm so happy. I'm so happy for the team, I'm so happy for the fans, for this character.
"We trained a lot, we showed a lot today and this is what the fans and the people want to see. This win, I think we deserve it."
Check out his full interview here…
Mateta madness
Jean-Philippe Mateta’s goalscoring form has continued from last season into this, with the centre-forward notching his fifth of the campaign against Spurs with an emphatic finish from close-range.
It means that only two players have scored more than Mateta’s 17 goals in 2024: Erling Haaland (24) and Cole Palmer (21).
Decent company…
Huuuuuuuuughes
Will Hughes started this match on the bench, but was called into action earlier than he might have expected after Jefferson Lerma came off injured.
But what an impact he made once again, flying into the tackles and showing composure on the ball to drive Palace forwards.
Making it look Eze
What an assist it was from Ebere Eze.
As the ball came in from Daniel Muñoz, the Palace No. 10 was under pressure and had only Mateta behind him for support.
No problem. He flicked it wonderfully around the corner and into the path of Mateta to slam home.
Eze was a constant threat for the Spurs defence, sitting two defenders down and unfortunate not to win a penalty while rounding the third in the second-half.
"I think we have seen the 'old' Eze all season," Oliver Glasner said at full-time. "He has been a bit unlucky. He scored a great goal but was offside. We know he is technically unbelievable."
Check out a pitchside view of that glorious assist above…