Crystal Palace 2-1 Watford
A late red card and two goals in the dying embers of this contest threatened to light up Crystal Palace’s season as they saw off a Watford side who appeared looked to have the game sewn up.
Tom Cleverley picked up a second yellow card to leave his side lost and ragged in midfield as Roy Hodgson's substitutes paid off big time. Wilfried Zaha looked revived, as if he himself had just come off the bench, and he preyed on the visitors’ ten remaining men, creating goals for Bakary Sako and James McArthur in the final minutes of the game.
Hodgson’s side had trotted onto the pitch with intent to continue a relegation scrap which they became embroiled in under Frank de Boer. They had two banks of four, plenty of determination, plenty of fight, and a front two of Zaha and Christian Benteke who can do damage to any defence on their day.
It was the old organiser against the modern schemer. Marco Silva set his Watford side up in a 3-4-3 formation which became 5-4-1 when defending, and the system relied heavily on the balance between the daring and discipline of two wing-backs, Daryl Janmaat and Jose Holebas.
Despite Palace’s regimental structure, one Watford wing-back managed to infiltrate them within a matter of minutes. Janmaat cut inside from the right to shoot on his left foot, and while it may have been a questionable decision for such a player to make, the subsequent block from Jeffrey Schlupp landed at the feet of the dangerous Richarlison on the opposite side of the pitch.
The Brazilian sensation hung a cross up at the far post where Janmaat, rather than dwelling on his earlier decision to shoot, had made an attacking run to get his head on the ball. The Dutchman provided the extra man in attack which a 4-4-2 formations can struggle to deal with, and he sliced through them to head his side convincingly into the lead.
Said lead should have been doubled when the ever-dangerous Richarlison put another one on a plate for a yellow shirted attacker. This time it was a low cross which fell to Deeney, but the striker was distracted by Scott Dann and missed the easy chance. On seeing the reply on the big screen, it was either laugh or cry for the Englishman, and in typical jollity he chose the former.
Palace tried to work their way into the game, but gave the ball away at vital moments once they reached the opposition area. Timothy Fosu-Mensah was particularly culpable, but occasionally the breakdown of the attack was caused by Watford’s stubbornness. Zaha was on the end of a few biting challenges and eventually earnt a couple of free kicks, but Benteke found himself matched for muscle in his battles with Christian Kabasele when balls came in.
Janmaat also joined in the defensive effort and one defensive header, stretching every sinew to nick the ball ahead of the waiting Benteke, might have been as important as his goal. Dann headed just wide from corner, but Heurelho Gomes’ sprawl across goal would have had it covered anyway.
The home side entered the pitch for the second period with a keener sense of adventure, but Watford kept them at bay. Sebastian Prodl prowled between Kabasele and Adrian Mariappa, who tested the referee but remained just on the right side of the laws as they gave Benteke and Zaha little room to manoeuvre.
The tide eventually turned bright yellow again. Richarlison continued to probe with support from Peruvian Andre Carrillo on the other side, while Deeney lurked, occupying both Palace centre backs.
The wily Hodgson replaced right-back Fosu-Mensah with Patrick Van Aanholt, a left footer to deal with Richarlison’s cut inside and shoot trick; a trick which Zaha used himself as he almost found the then elusive equaliser shooting agonisingly over the bar.
A host of substitutions — all six were made at different times — appeared to suit Watford as the game broke up, but in the dying minutes of the game Cleverley stupidly hacked down a breaking Schlupp and knew instantly that his game was over. Already on a yellow he was off before he even made contact with the full back, in a moment which will have played through his mind in slow motion.
Palace burst into life, buoyed by the disarray this loss caused in the Watford ranks, and the wall they had come up against throughout the game was now broken.
Zaha cut inside again, with Richarlison now watching enviously from the bench having been replaced by Roberto Pereyra. The Ivorian attacker’s shot rebounded off Gomes twice before being turned home by one of the substitutes, Sako.
‘Find Zaha’, will have been the shout from Hodgson on the touchline, and with new freedom and space the 25-year-old wreaked havoc in the few minutes which were to decide the game. Another sprint forward led him this time to the byline, and his ball into the middle was turned home by McArthur.
If seasons are to be defined in one game, Hodgson may hope that comfort comes earlier than it did in 96-minutes here, but he’ll also be happy if they’re to burst out of the relegation zone in the manner which they stormed into the lead in the final moments at Selhurst Park tonight.
