Thank you very much for joining me. Here is a match report from Ed Aarons for you to enjoy.
Vieira: “It was a big team performance. We stick together and to win a game we needed to win took a lot of personality and courage. I am really pleased for them.
“Today was a hard process to go through but that is how you improve.
“There is still a lot to come from him [Gallagher]. We need to manage his strength and find out the best way to manage his energy. For us he is a fantastic player to have as it gives everything for his team.”
A decent hit.
🎙️ "He started it, and boy has he finished it!"
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 12, 2021
Conor Gallagher - take a bow! 👏
The 21-year-old seals the deal for #CPFC with a stunning strike 💥 pic.twitter.com/xZOaDsjN3c
Gallagher: “I think it was a fantastic performance from us. It was a bit nervy after they scored but we defended superbly.
“I’ve felt like we’ve been unlucky recently. We wanted to give the fans a performance today and we did.
“I love it, them [the fans] singing my name is a great feeling for me, it gives me confidence.
“We are not where we want to be in the table so hopefully we can pick up some more points (this week).”
I was pretty shocked by how poor Everton were today. I thought they would come into this game bouncing after beating Arsenal but instead invited Palace onto them, allowing a team who had lost their past three games to build their confidence up against a ragged defence.
Another great day for Gallagher and Palace. The midfielder looks like he is set for bigger and better things than Palace in the future (no offence Eagles fans). He kept Palace ticking and scored with two fine finishes, the second being beyond impressive.
Full-time! Crystal Palace 3-1 Everton
All of Palace’s goals came from mistakes in the Everton defence, which will be very frustration for Benitez but the result was a very fair one as Palace were superior from start to finish.
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GOAL! Crystal Palace 3-1 Everton (Gallagher, 90+4)
Palace look to kill some time in the corner but they give away a foul. Coleman decides to whack the free-kick immediately, only hitting it about 20 yards where Gallagher picks it up before picking out the top corner with a beautiful curling shot from the edge of the box.
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90+2 mins: Townsend goes to the floor looking for a foul in the Palace half but nothing is doing for him, much to his chagrin, instead the hosts get a throw in order to kill some time.
More needle as Holgate flies into Benteke on the left flank, resulting in a Palace free-kick.
90 mins: Guaita gets his finger strapped up. Not the best time to suffer an injury.
Clyne comes on for Mitchell.
Five minutes added on ...
88 mins: Benteke flies into Coleman on the right touchline, catching him on the top of the foot. Not Benteke’s best work but he avoids a booking.
86 mins: Benteke drives into the box and then pulls a cross back but Everton just about manage to clear. They quickly break down the other end through Gordon on the right, who dribbles into the error and shoots at Guaita who palms it into a dangerous area and the ball lands at the feet of a defender who clears.
84 mins: Palace clear a free-kick but Coleman is there to stop it the counter by diving on top of the ball and handling it. Inexplicably, he is not booked for his cynical efforts.
82 mins: Gallagher is on holding his right foot after a few knocks. Godfrey the latest to catch him. Despite sitting there for a good minute, no one has bothered to come on to try and treat him.
80 mins: More pushing and shoving as Gomes takes down Zaha and then Gallagher in quick succession. Palace are irked by the Portuguese’s illegal efforts, especially his shouting at Gallagher on the ground.
78 mins: Gallagher plays a corner short, getting it back on the edge of the box but his shot is turned behind by a defender’s boot. The next corner is more traditional but Benteke’s header ends up going behind him rather than toward goal.
76 mins: Everton have a chance level! Ward is caught in possession by Godfrey inside the Palace box, before pulling it back to Rondon who lays the ball into Townsend’s path but his shot is deflected wide.
Gray takes a poor touch and then cleans out Ayew in response, catching him on both feet with a lunge. Gray is, understandably, booked.
74 mins: A double change for Palace as Hughes and Edouard are replaced by Schlupp and Benteke.
Brad Wilson emails: “As an Evertonian I feel badly for Gordon. He always gives 100 percent and seems to really care and play hard — unlike several others I could name — but he does not get enough time. At this point I would play him and Braithwaite and Simms and the other kids. How could it be worse?”
72 mins: Everton are back in the game but Richarlison just looks even angrier on the bench. Chin up, mate.
Doucoure goes into the book for a foul on Ayew and then does his best to do a Jimenez by moaning at the referee for an extended period.
GOAL! Crystal Palace 2-1 Everton (Rondon, 70)
Game on! Rondon controls the ball in the box, holding it up before laying it into Doucoure’s path - his shot is deflected back to the striker who slides in the goal.
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68 mins: Pickford has been over to the side for a big gulp of water or something of that ilk. I would have thought he has a bottle in his net, so I wonder if he was washing painkillers down or something.
Gray gets a free-kick up and over the wall from 30 yards but it dips just over the bar.
66 mins: Gordon picks up a loose ball and drives down the right, before fizzing in a low cross which Guehi turns behind. Unsurprisingly, the corner comes to nothing. I fear we could be going through the motions for the final 25 minutes.
64 mins: Everton’s counter-attacking style is based on the defence being competent but they have let the side down for the two goals. Oh well.
GOAL! Crystal Palace 2-0 Everton (Tomkins, 62)
Hughes swings in a corner from the right, which is flicked on to the back post where Tomkins is lurking in acres of space and he jabs home after inadvertently controlling the ball on his thigh. More poor Everton defending.
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61 mins: Richarlison is now sat at the back of the dugout eating his shirt. He does not look happy. He gets to watch as Gray curls a potentially dangerous free-kick out for a goal-kick.
59 mins: Richarlison was anonymous for an hour. On the one hand, his performance does not merit him being kept on but, on the other, Everton’s style would not help any striker.
57 mins: Everton are going for Plan B. It seems to involve Solomon Rondon and Anthony Gordon. Delph and Richarlison depart. Neither of those going offer seem pleased with Benitez’s decision.
55 mins: Hughes excites the crowd with some skilful twists and turns in his own half to bamboozle the Everton midfield. Holgate ends the fun with a Peter Kay style ‘ave it, which goes behind for a goal-kick.
Down the other end ... Ayew clips a pass to Gallagher the other side of the defence, he controls the ball and fires a shot from a tight angle, which Pickford turns behind.
53 mins: The ball is lifted into the box for Gallagher, who controls it after pushing Keane out of the way, allowing him to lay it into Edouard’s path but his toe-poked effort does not make it as far as the goal.
51 mins: Ward gets the ball back from a throw-in and then whacks it straight into the main stand. Not the best attempt at a clearance from the Palace skipper.
49 mins: Townsend twists and turns away from Mitchell, forcing the left-back to bring him down.
Zaha whips in a cross from the left which finds Gallagher eight yards out but he can only divert his header wide.
47 mins: Ayew whips in another dangerous cross but it defeats both attackers and defending as it goes out for a throw.
“Jose to Everton?” asks Mary Waltz. “No. Nyet. FFS no. Hell no.Noooooooooooooooooooooo. nevah, nevah, nevah.”
So, that’s a maybe?
Second-half
Here we go again!
Our man at Selhurst.
Brilliant half from Conor Gallagher. Running the show
— Ed Aarons (@ed_aarons) December 12, 2021
Half-time! Crystal Palace 1-0 Everton
Palace have been pretty dominant from the first minute as Everton hope for the best on the counter attack but they are yet to threaten in any meaningful way, as they play without much in the way of ambition.
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45 mins: Two minutes added on.
“Sure,” says Peter Oh. “Patrick Vieira may have transformed Crystal Palace, but today they don’t need to be better than ever. They just need to be better than Everton.”
Aye, it ain’t hard. You’d think Everton would be on a high from beating Arsenal but instead they currently look incredibly mediocre.
43 mins: Benitez will be ripping out whatever hair he can find after that goal. The attempts were impressively amateur. I would have been shouting abuse for a good two hours if any of my teammates cocked up like that.
Holgate gets into it with Ayew because Everton are making up for a lack of quality with plenty of needle.
GOAL! Crystal Palace 1-0 Everton (Gallagher, 41)
Everton have about three chances to clear the ball but fail to do so in pitiful fashion. The ball ends up with Ayew in the box and he pulls it back for the the onrushing Chelsea loanee to calmly tuck into the corner from eight yards.
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40 mins: Palace win a corner on the right after Ayew’s cross is blocked. Hughes wanders over to take it and swings a cross to the edge of the six-yard box where it is met by a defender who clears.
38 mins: Edouard charges down a Keane clearance to give the crowd something to cheer but it comes to nothing.
35 mins: Crystal Palace have not threatened Pickford since the early Ayew chance. They play some decent stuff but really need to be more incisive if they are to get the win here.
33 mins: Makeshift left-back Godfrey marauds down the wing and swings in a dangerous cross which Gomes meets on the volley but once again Guaita does not need to move an inch to save it.
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31 mins: Gallagher is dispossessed facing his own goal on the halfway line, he claims a foul is involved but the referee does not; Everton break down the pitch, as Gray takes control of the ball and drives inside, only to skim a low shot into the arms of Guaita.
29 mins: Edouard has not really got into the game thus far, which is a concern for a Palace side struggling to convert chances. I would like to see him play on the centre backs, rather than dropping deeper as he keeps doing.
27 mins: A long ball is sent up for Richarlison to control under pressure from Guehi; the Brazilian takes it down but uses his arm to do so.
Down the other end ... Palace win a corner, which is sent into the box by Gallagher. The ball is cleared to Guehi about 15 yards out but his shot is deflected wide.
25 mins: Zaha is unhappy with the referee about something or other. Moments later he cleanly clatters into Delph but then they both partake in a bit of pushing and shoving for good measure. The referee pulls the two players and captains in for a chat, allowing them to all make up and be friends again. What a lovely sight.
22 mins: Benitez comes out of the dugout to have a word with Townsend as he looks to tweak a few things to get Everton into this match.
20 mins: Zaha has his first run of note, he cuts in from the left and fires a low shot at goal but it only makes it as far as Holgate’s right ankle.
18 mins: Everton enjoy their first break of the match but it ends when Townsend is bundled out of play on the right. Everton are here to play on the counter, so we can expect plenty more of this.
16 mins: Gallagher takes the subsequent free-kick which makes its way over the wall and towards the bottom corner but Pickford grabs it with ease.
Down the other end, Gray decides it is time Everton have a shot at goal, so does so from distance but it is straight down Guaita’s throat.
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14 mins: Richarlison sprints back to clatter into Hughes who heads the ball forward before hitting the deck. Palace get the free-kick 3o yards from goal thanks to Richarlison’s missplaced exuberance.
12 mins: Gallagher takes the ball from Edouard 20 yards from goal, he spins and gets it out of his feet before flashing a shot over the bar. Palace very much on top. Efan Ekoku describes Everton as “timid”.
Ayew sprints down the right and sends in a fine cross for Edouard to attack but he does not connect with the ball and Everton manage to clear after a little pinball in the box.
10 mins: Palace look the more aggressive side, as Everton are feeling their way into the game. The Toffees have not even considered threatening the Palace backline yet.
8 mins: Ayew is slipped through by Edouard, before whacking a shot at goal from inside the area only to see Pickford’s boot repel it.
6 mins: The two back fours consist of seven Englishmen and one Irishman. Graeme Souness will be very pleased.
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4 mins: Gray bursts down the left flank but gets crowded in the corner. He manages to get a weak cross into the box, which is easily cleared.
Gomes is on the deck after getting a finger from Kouyate in the eye. One of those that looks innocuous but really ruddy hurt.
2 mins: Palace have the best of the opening exchanges but there is little to write home about.
Kick-off!
Peep! Peep! Peep! Here we go!
Very much a crisp day for football in south east London. You could not ask for much better conditions in December.
I assume by the end of the 90 minutes, people will be talking more about this match than the F1 championship.
“Two years living in Italy in my youth made me a Roma fan,” emails Eric Peterson. “The 1984 European Cup final made me an Everton fan. The Circus Maximus that Jose Mourinho has created at Roma makes me sad. Jonathan Wilson’s observation that the next club Mourinho runs into the ground could be Everton makes me angry. The knowledge that Farhad Moshiri is fully capable of falling for the Specious One’s snake-oil charm and opening the Goodison gates to his medieval managerial rampage makes me nauseous.”
These are Mr Wilson’s views:
The gaffers.
Andros Townsend is back at Selhurst Park. He seemed to find it very frustrating playing under Hodgson where defending was more important than attacking. He has a new lease of life at Everton as he looks like a winger once again.
Seeing as Everton are playing, some proof that I am a versatile professional.
Still no Lucas Digne for Everton ...
Will Hughes makes his first start for Palace following his summer move for Watford. He is joined in the starting XI Edouard, who is preferred to Benteke.
Starting lineups
Crystal Palace (4-3-3): Guaita, Ward, Guehi, Tomkins, Mitchell, Kouyate, Hughes, Gallagher, Ayew, Edouard, Zaha
Subs: Butland, Kelly, Clyne, Riedewald, Schlupp, Eze, Olis, Matten, Benteke
Everton (4-3-3): Pickford, Coleman, Holgate, Keane, Godfrey, Delph, Doucoure, Gomes, Gray, Townsend, Richarlison
Subs: Begovic, Kenny, Iwobi, Gordon, Gbamin, Branthwaite, Rondon, Simms, Onyango
Good afternoon!
It is 14th v 18th in the Premier League form table, which does not give us much reason to get excited on paper. Crystal Palace and Everton are, however, two pretty interesting sides, I promise.
Palace have been completely transformed under Patrick Vieira since the former Arsenal man replaced Roy Hodgson in the summer. The team have gone from the kings of tedium to become an attacking threat, but they do not have a striker suitably prolific to make the difference in the box. Christian Benteke has four goals to his name but plenty more chances missed. If Vieira can get the Belgian to re-find the composure he enjoyed at Aston Villa, it could complete this Palace side, otherwise he could be desperately asking for money to spend in January.
Everton are unlikely to splash much cash in the winter window, too. Investment at Goodison Park has slowed this season - there was little spent over the summer and that has showed in their form. Demarai Gray has rightly earned praise for his efforts but there have been few others to impress this season for the Toffees. They come into this off the back of defeating Arsenal at home, which should give the team a morale boost and could make this outing a far more entertaining affair.
Let’s hope for a classic!
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