Report & Highlights: Sarr strikes late to see off Ipswich

Summary:

• 2: Wharton releases Nketiah, but his effort is smothered by Palmer.
• 3: Henderson gets down to turn away Philogene’s low strike from close range.
• 14: Lerma’s crisp effort from the ‘D’ whistles narrowly wide of the post.
• 20: Eze runs through, but shot is deflected over the bar by O’Shea.
• 24: Enciso drives into the box, but Henderson springs high to turn effort over.
• 40: Nketiah attacks Sarr’s low cross but Ipswich get back to defend it.
• HT: Palace 0-0 Ipswich
• 50: Eze’s shot takes a huge deflection and loops over the ‘keeper – but hits the post.
• 61: Henderson denies Clarke at his near post before Sarr clears off the line.
• 64: Eze’s deflected effort tipped over by Palmer, before Sarr glances wide from the corner.
• 67: Eze juggles the ball inside the box, but miscues his effort.
• 78: Muñoz races onto a misplaced backpass but his finish is kicked away by Palmer.
• 80: Johnson heads over when unmarked for Ipswich.
• 82 – GOAL: Sarr exchanges passes with Kamada and chips Palmer to give Palace the lead.
• 90: Palace withstand late aerial pressure to claim all three points.
• FT: Palace 1-0 Ipswich

Palace went into the game chasing a third back-to-back win at Selhurst Park in all competitions – and fourth in seven matches since the start of 2025, a run of form which has propelled our Premier League and FA Cup aspirations of late.

Against Ipswic, they were without two players instrumental to that run, with top scorer Jean-Philippe Mateta ruled out following his injury against Millwall, and midfielder Will Hughes suspended for two matches through accumulation of yellow cards.

The duo were replaced by Eddie Nketiah – goalscorer in both of his previous two matches – and Adam Wharton, as Dean Henderson and Tyrick Mitchell also came back into the side for the encounter.

And it was Nketiah who – having finished the last two games at Selhurst off so memorably –  had the chance to score inside the opening two minutes, freed by Wharton’s superb outside-of-the-boot through-ball – only for Ipswich ‘keeper Alex Palmer to race from his line and smother the effort.

Seconds later,  Ipswich could have taken the lead, a fine run from Leif Davis seeing the left-back pull a hopeful low cross back towards the penalty spot. Jaden Philogene was first to it but scuffed his strike, and Henderson got down superbly to turn the bobbling shot away from goal.

After such an open start, a match between two notoriously high-intensity teams did begin to simmer down, both teams working the ball into some good attacking positions but struggling to find the final pass to match. Jefferson Lerma was next to go close with a fizzing low effort from the edge of the ‘D’.

Both teams had times when they threatened, but Palace were creating clearer openings, and when Eze ran free again after a neat spell of quick passing involving Nketiah, only a last-ditch tackle from Dara O’Shea prevented his curling effort from finding the far corner.

Julio Enciso was putting in a lively display for the visitors, and managed to trick his way past two red and blue shirts before firing a rising drive towards the top corner. Henderson reacted sharply at his near post to turn it over the bar.

After the early flurry of chances, a slight lull for the remainder of the first-half as the two teams struggled to resume that earlier intensity – although Palace did see plenty of the ball and, at the end of one particularly incisive passage, had Sarr inches from finding Nketiah sliding in at the near post.

It was a performance lacking nothing for energy from either side, but lacking in decisive moments – although Palace almost had one out of nothing early in the second-half.

Eze was the man to come close to providing it, his shot from the edge of the box benefitting from a generous deflection off an Ipswich shirt and looping over Palmer – but crashing against the frame of the upright. As the ball bounced down, it did so behind Nketiah, whose momentum carried him beyond it – and the danger passed.

The two sides continued to trade blows, Jack Clarke next to be be denied by Henderson at his near post, before Liam Delap’s header was parried by the Palace ‘keeper and Philogene – attempting to scramble it over the line – was denied by Sarr on the line.

Eze twice went close in the following moments – the first with another deflected effort kept out by Palmer, and the latter juggling the ball before slamming a volley wide – and Sarr also had a good chance to score, but his glancing header from a corner beat the ‘keeper, but did not find the net.

It was always likely that one goal would win it – and Muñoz seemed set to claim it when the Colombian, three times on the scoresheet last month, capitalised on a loose Davis backpass 12 minutes from time, only for his placed finish to be kicked away by the Ipswich ‘keeper.

Moments later, Ipswich themselves should have scored – but Ben Johnson, unmarked at the back post from Davis’ cross – nodded over the bar from six yards out.

One goal always looked likely to settle it – and it arrived eight minutes from time after a moment of quality play.

Sarr, leading the line after Daichi Kamada came on for Nketiah, exchanged passes with the Japan international and – dragging the ball past his man – produced a cute dinked finish over Palmer to ripple the back of the net.

The Senegal international sprinted over to the corner flag to boot it in celebration – Mateta-style, with an accompanying Selhurst ‘BOOM’ – and demonstrate the outstanding unity within this Palace squad.

The Eagles withstood a late Ipswich aerial surge, but one goal was enough to see Glasner’s side move up to 11th in the Premier League table ahead of a three-week break in competitive fixtures.

Now just three points off the top half of the table, and with an FA Cup quarter-final to come, who knows just how much the final furlong of this incredible season promises?

Palace: Henderson (GK), Richards, Lacroix, Guéhi, Muñoz, Wharton (Devenny, 87), Lerma, Mitchell (Chilwell, 72), Eze (Esse, 90+2), Sarr, Nketiah (Kamada, 72).

Subs: Turner (GK), Clyne, Kporha, Rodney, França.

Ipswich: Palmer (GK), O’Shea, Woolfenden, Greaves (Taylor, 84), Davis, Phillips, Cajuste, Philogene (Johnson, 66), Enciso (Broadhead, 75), J. Clarke (Hutchinson, 66), Delap (Hirst, 84).

Subs: Walton (GK), Burgess, Townsend, Morsy.

As It Happened