U18s Report: Eagles trump Brighton to top PL Cup group

Summary

• Rob Quinn made three changes to the side, with Laurie Shala, Kalani Barton and Basilio Reino Socoliche starting

• Adler Nascimento opened the scoring 10 minutes in with a first-time finish

• Junior Dixon had the ball in the back of the net twice, but both efforts were ruled out for offside

• Nascimento doubled the lead for Palace five minutes before the break

• Half-time: Crystal Palace 2-0 Brighton & Hove Albion

• Dixon came close to finding a third early on in the half

• Vonnte Williams finished brilliantly with 15 minutes remaining after a surging run

• Nascimento nearly secured his hat-trick in injury time, but his effort was blocked

• Full-time: Crystal Palace 3-0 Brighton & Hove Albion

A week on from putting three past West Bromwich Albion, the young Eagles were in Under 18 Premier League Cup action as they welcomed fierce rivals Brighton & Hove Albion to Copers Cope.

Rob Quinn mad three changes to the side which won in the West Midlands, with Laurie Shala, Kalani Barton and Basilio Reino Socoliche starting in place of Jackson Izquierdo, Caleb Kphora and Zach Marsh.

Palace enjoyed a lot of the ball in the opening exchanges. The young Eagles were building up from the back and passing it around with ease in the first 10 minutes and managed to take the lead through Adler Nascimento.

Pressure from the front from Socoliche saw him win the ball back inside the Brighton final third - he managed to pick out Junior Dixon running in behind who in turn put a perfectly weighted pass across the box which Nascimento got on the end of to put Palace ahead.

The young Eagles were in full flow after taking the lead, they continued to enjoy a lot of the ball and created a number of chances. Dixon had the ball in the back of the net halfway through the first-half, though his effort was ruled out for offside.

As the half went on, Palace’s dominance continued. Freddie Bell, Hindolo Mustapha and Dixon had further chances to double the lead, though their efforts were either narrowly wide or dealt with by Hugo Fisher in the Brighton goal.

Bailey Smith came closest for Brighton on the half hour mark, though his tame effort inside the box was easily dealt with by Shala in the Palace goal.

With five minutes remaining in the half, Palace doubled their lead. Joe Gibbard’s pressing from the front saw him win the ball back twice in the final third before teeing up the onrushing Nascimento inside the box for his and Palace’s second.

Dixon had the ball in the back of the net once again on the stroke of half-time, following a well-worked move from Socoliche and Kalani Barton, though it was once again ruled out for offside.

After a whirlwind first-half, the two sides emerged after the interval and resumed with a notably lower tempo. The slower pace of the game didn’t deter the young Eagles from pressing from the front and creating more chances.

Ten minutes into the half, Socoliche and Mustapha’s pressing from the front saw the ball break to Dixon - his effort on the edge of the box went just wide of the top corner.

With just over 15 minutes remaining in the half, Vonnte Williams went on a surging solo run from the half-way line past four Brighton challenges all the way into the box and managed to curl in the third past a helpless Fisher.

The third goal all but secured the three points for the young Eagles, though that didn’t stop them attempting to notch more before the final whistle. Mustapha and second-half substitutes Rio Cardines and Caleb Kphora came close with their respective efforts, though they couldn’t quite find the back of the net as Palace saw out the rest of the time remaining.

Victory means that Rob Quinn’s side now sit top of their Under 18 Premier League Cup group, level with Sheffield United who beat Leeds earlier this afternoon.

Crystal Palace: Shala, Barton (Cardines, 82), Grante, Jemide, Williams, Gibbard (Austin, 80), Bell, Mustapha (Marroni, 82), Nascimento, Dixon, Socoliche (Kphora, 62).

Subs not used: Eastwood.

Brighton & Hove Albion: Fisher, Lee, Mills, Penman, Tasker, Albarus, Smith, Knight (West, 80), Duffus (Bashir, 37), Gee (Owusu, 62), Fuller.

Subs not used: Ryan, Reid.