Summary:
- Three changes for Palace; Hughes, Lerma & Ayew all return to starting XI
- Nervy opening sees visitors enjoy majority of possession
- Henderson keeps out Adingra’s rising drive across goal
- Mateta tests Verbruggen’s handling from distance after 25 minutes
- Forward sees first-time effort blocked as Palace finish the half strongly
- Richards, Mateta and Olise all denied by last-ditch Brighton defending
- Ayew stoops to head home Olise cross in closing moments of the half
- HT: Palace 1-0 Brighton
- Verbruggen smothers Mateta’s poked shot as match picks up tempo
- Dunk heads wide of the far post as visitors push back
- Henderson denies Gilmour's drive and Hinshelwood blazes over as Brighton up the pressure
- Goalkeeper involved in goalmouth scramble as Guéhi blocks from Van Hecke
- Eze sees effort on the breakaway blocked by Brighton defender
- Welbeck’s impressive looping header draws Brighton level
- Brighton striker comes close to scoring fortunate late winner
- FT: Palace 1-1 Brighton
Palace had clinched a superb result at Manchester City the Saturday prior – particularly given, as manager Roy Hodgson had pointed out, the number of absences from his regular starting XI at the Etihad Stadium.
Three stalwarts of the team were once again fit and eligible for the visit of arch-rivals Brighton to Selhurst Park, with midfielders Jefferson Lerma and Will Hughes restored to the side following injury and illness respectively, and Ayew returning from suspension.
Setting out to give their supporters a lead-up to Christmas to remember, Palace’s raucous support – all four sides of the stadium bouncing – set the tone for a thunderous atmosphere in SE25.
Yet despite its setting, the match began slowly, Brighton – as you might expect – enjoying the majority of possession without really threatening the Palace goal.
Their first real chance arrived after 18 minutes from a raking pass from left-back Igor Julio, which drifted across the box for Simon Adingra to touch and hit. Palace home debutant Dean Henderson did well to beat the strike away, before Carlos Baleba – under pressure from Hughes – skewed the rebound wide.
It was to prove Brighton’s best chance of the half – and paved the way for a spell of Palace domination.
Jean-Philippe Mateta, scorer of goals against both Liverpool and Manchester City in his last two appearances, was heavily involved throughout, testing goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen’s handling with a dipping effort from 30 yards following good work from Tyrick Mitchell.
Then, on the half-hour mark, Palace took hold of proceedings, a pair of teasing Olise deliveries – the first requiring Brighton defender Paul Van Hecke to head just wide of his own goal on the stretch, the second rebounding off an unsighted Ayew six yards out – setting the tone.
The crowd was roaring and the chances kept flowing, Olise feeding Mateta inside the box; the forward’s first-time shot on the spin was blocked by the covering Lewis Dunk.
Moments later and three Palace players all saw themselves denied by last-ditch blocks in quick succession: Chris Richards, Mateta and Olise were all denied clean strikes at goal.
It was one-way traffic as half-time approached and – as the clocked ticked into injury-time – Palace were finally able to profit from their dominance.
The goal owed much to the perseverance of Richards, who came close to nicking the ball off Verbruggen on the Brighton goal-line – but instead forced the ‘keeper to play the ball straight to Olise.
The winger did well to exchange passes with Hughes and curl in a delightful, dipping cross which Ayew – inside the six-yard box – stooped to head home with south London’s glee.
It was the last action of note in a half Palace had grown to dominate – and they resumed that tempo immediately after the restart. A hopeful ball forwards invited Mateta to show his strength, wrestling past Dunk and stretching out a long leg to prod it goalwards – but Verbruggen, racing from his line, was able to smother.
