Full Time: Southampton 3-1 Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace were brought back down to earth after several high-flying weeks when they were handed a 3-1 defeat by Southampton at the St. Mary’s on Wednesday night.
The Eagles opened the scoring on the half-hour mark when Christian Benteke slotted into the net from close range from an Andros Townsend cross, to finish off a sweeping team move. Southampton were denied two penalty claims in quick succession on the stroke of half-time, but winger Nathan Redmond made sure the two teams went into the break on level terms with a volleyed effort that squeezed through a crowd o Palace players before nestling in the net.
The Saints turned on the heat in the second half and were rewarded for their efforts late in the game when defender Maya Yoshida made it 2-1 by tucking the ball into an empty net in the 84th minute. Southampton made it two goals in two minutes as midfielder James Ward-Prowse slammed home the third to put the result beyond doubt.
The result meant the four-game winning streak for Palace was brought to a halt by Southampton, leaving Sam Allardyce’s men 16th in the table; just three points above the relegation zone.
Crystal Palace Player Ratings
Wayne Hennessey – 7/10
Made a string of stunning saves to deny the likes of Shane Long and Oriol Romeu. Put in another heroic display and did not deserve to concede the late goals.
Joel Ward – 6/10
Got through the game comfortably with not much to deal with defensively on the right-flank. Could have gotten forward more.
Martin Kelly – 6/10
Came into the line-up with Scott Dann and James Tomkins unavailable. Dealt with everything that came his way comfortably. Came agonizingly close to scoring.
Mamadou Sakho – 6/10
Almost scored an own goal in the second half. Other than that, a usual combative display filled with interceptions and tackles.
Jeffrey Schlupp – 6/10
Started the move that led to the opener for Crystal Palace. Almost gave away a penalty soon after, when he appeared to handle the ball in the box but got away with it. Subbed off in the second half.
Luka Milivojevic – 6/10
Nearly handed Crystal Palace the lead from a free-kick. Did his job well by shielding the defence strongly for large parts of the game.
Yohan Cabaye – 5/10
Looked to get on the ball and get involved in the middle of the park. Was taken off at half-time, probably due to an injury concern.
Andros Townsend – 6/10
A brilliant assist for Benteke’s opener, following a decent run. Frustrated the Saints on quite a few occasions in the second-half. The end product wasn’t up to the mark.
Jason Puncheon – 5.5/10
The captain was always in the game, looking to make things happen, but lacked the quality and the cutting edge in the attacking third.
Wilfried Zaha – 5/10
Looked to get on the ball early. Almost gave Palace the lead, but had his shot blocked. His finishing wasn’t up to the mark. Wasn’t alert enough to pounce on the rebound from Kelly’s effort that hit the post. Faded as the game progressed.
Christian Benteke – 5.5/10
Had a couple of chances early in the first-half. Used his physique well and set Palace off with a thumping effort from close range. Went quiet after the restart. More is expected from the Belgian.
Substitutes
Bakary Sako – 5/10
Replaced Cabaye after the break. Struggled to make any sort of impact.
Damien Delaney – 6/10
Came in for Schlupp in the 58th minute with Palace opting for a three-man defence. Made a great block to deny Steven Davis, but it went in vain as Saints scored a few seconds later.
Mathieu Flamini – NA
Came late into the game for Milivojevic.