Peep peep! Palace move up to ninth, above Arsenal, after a quietly emphatic victory at the Vitality Stadium. Luka Milivojevic and Jordan Ayew scored fone goals in the first 23 minutes, and after that Palace kept Bournemouth at arm’s length with their usual excellent defending. It was an immaculate away performance. Thanks for your company, goodnight!
78 min A loose ball comes to Stanislas on the right side of the area. He chops the ball away from McArthur and drives a left-footed shot well wide of the far post.
Bournemouth press forward in an effort to get back into the game. Photograph: Ian Walton/Pool/Reuters
73 min Van Aanholt’s angled free-kick is headed down by Benteke to Cahill, who lashes a volley over the bar from 15 yards. It was a very difficult chance, though he is an excellent finisher for a centre-back.
63 min Ake’s header, from Stanislas’s outswinging corner, is comfortably saved by Guaita. Ake headed the back of Cahill’s head in his follow through and is receiving treatment. He looks okay, if a bit groggy.
58 min Palace are slowly draining the enthusiasm out of Bournemouth, as they did in the first half. A goal would change everything, but at the moment Palace are in control.
Bournemouth’s Jefferson Lerma battles for possession with Wilfried Zaha of Crystal Palace. Photograph: Michael Steele/Getty Images
56 min “I always remember Gerard Pique’s anecdote about Carles Puyol on concentration,” says Mike MacKenzie. “One game, Barca were 4-0 up in the second half. Something humorous occurred and Pique laughed out loud. Puyol shouted at him ‘Focus!!’ (in Catalan of course!).”
55 min “Hodgson is indeed an excellent defensive coach,” says Matt Dony. “Now, as a Liverpool fan, I’m never going to be overly enamoured with him, and as a Welshman, there are few things funnier than THAT Iceland game (although, in fairness, much of the humour came from Steve McClaren’s reaction), but he is often unfairly dismissed. His record is long and impressive, and few British coaches can touch his work abroad. I hope he sticks around in the league for a little while yet.”
He’s a superb coach of smaller teams. It sometimes feels like he’d finish in mid-table whether he was in charge of Barcelona or Accrington Stanley.
47 min Lerma puts the ball out of play so that Josh King can receive treatment. It was a full-blooded tackle from Cahill, who won the ball and then followed through into King’s ankle. VAR are checking for a possible red card, and I reckon Cahill will walk for this.
Crystal Palace’s Gary Cahill, left, catches Bournemouth’s Joshua King after winning the ball. Photograph: Ian Walton/Pool/AP
Cahill checks on King. Photograph: Michael Steele/Pool/Reuters
Peep peep! Palace are on course for victory to thanks to excellent goals from Luka Milivojevic and Jordan Ayew. They have been immaculate in defence and ruthless in attack; Bournemouth haven’t.
