CRYSTAL PALACE HOLD MAN UNITED AT HOME

CRYSTAL PALACE 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 0

BY AYODELE ODUMADE AT SELHURST PARK

After back-to-back losses, Crystal Palace earned a well-deserved point at home against a lackluster Manchester United team and could have got more out of the game if their players took at least one of the chances they were presented with. All the Palace players put in a shift, in what was a gutsy and dogged performance.

 For United clearly a problem has developed as they have now failed to score in their last three games, thus dropping crucial points in the league in two of them. 

In the very first minute, while United were still getting a feel of the ball, Dwight Gayle pinched it off Morgan Schneiderlin and hit a low shot, which David De Gea saved.  Palace were rampant and in the 9^th minute Yanick Bolasie hit the cross bar with a thunderous shot a De Gea save.  A minute later De Gea had to tip a header from Scot Dann over his crossbar from a corner.

Palace were playing like a team possessed and were like a rash in United’s’ faces.  They were quick to the ball and just would not let United settle. They were pinging passes like messages on a Blackberry Messenger.

Just after the midway point of the half, United were awarded a free kick for a foul on Juan Mata. Up stepped Wayne Rooney who hit a shot, which was on target but comfortably saved by Wayne Hennessey who kept his place in goal, despite Julian Speroni’s return from injury.

Just after the hour mark, Anthony Martial played a defence splitting pass to Rooney but Hennessey was quick off his line and smothered Rooney’s shot.   United gradually began to dominate possession without doing much with it. The game remained scoreless at the break.

Wilfred Zaha gave Matteo Darmian, who has gone off the boil lately a hard time. Darmian got booked for one tackle too many, which rules him out of Man United’s next game against West Brom next weekend at Old Trafford. 

Palace should have taken the lead in the 73^rd minute. Bolasie passed the ball to Joel Ward on the right, who ten crossed the ball to Yohan Cabaye, who found himself unmarked in the United box, but he could not direct his shot goal wards. Minutes later from a corner whipped in by Cabaye, Dann header was just wide of goal.

Palace kept knocking and a minute later Bolasie saw his shot ricochet to Gayle who was one on one with De Gea but the Spaniard keeper saved his shot with his feet.  Despite United’s sustained possession in the second half, Palace had most of the clear-cut chances.

In stoppage time Palace had another chance from a corner taken by Cabaye, but Damien Delaney’s header was just over the bar.  At the final whistle the Palace fans celebrated a famous point.  On a day when the other title contenders won, Manchester United lost ground dropping two crucial points.  At the moment they must be wondering where their next goal is coming from.

Last season De Gea was United’s hero.  This time he was their saviour as he stopped United going away with nothing.

Louis Van Gaal said: “Today when you are not creating chances I cannot complain.  Palace started well.  They won every second ball, kept the pressure on us and did not give us any second on the ball. Palace showed more aggression in the second half. We were not the better team today.”

Alan Pardew said: “We decided to high press today, which was risky against Manchester United.  We stopped them from playing. We should have won it. We have to see this period through. We have to get something against Liverpool next week.  Man United were looking for incision but it did not come off for them today. I wish them good luck during the week against Moscow because it is good for England for them to do well in the Champions league.”