An eventful M23 Derby at the Amex stadium ended with both teams sharing the spoils as Conor Gallagher and Jack Butland proved decisive.
A thoroughly entertaining evening at the Amex Stadium ended with Brighton and Crystal Palace sharing the points from the latest edition of the M23 Derby. Both teams had the chances and showed the will to get three points from this encounter before a late Joachim Andersen own goal settled the tie.
Brighton started the game by creating the pressure in the first half and ended up dominating proceedings in the opening period. Crystal Palace seemed to be waiting for opportunities to hit their hosts on the counter and found joy at times. However, the game reached a decisive point as Brighton were awarded a delayed penalty decision for Will Hughes’s foul in the box.
Jack Butland saved Pascal Gross’s tame spot-kick well to keep the score intact, although the resulting corner created more controversy. The Crystal Palace goalkeeper seemed to have misjudged the ball before Neal Maupay bundled it into the net and went about celebrating the goal. However, VAR intervened and cancelled the goal for a foul from the striker on Butland.
With the first half ending as it had begun, the next period brought all the missing excitement. Conor Gallagher, who was anonymous until that point, slotted home the opener at the end of a team move from close range after some good work from Jeffrey Schlupp.
Just as things seemed to be going Palace’s way, Maupay forced a late own goal from Joachim Andersen, meaning the game ended in a draw. The outcome was a deserved one for both sides and should not disappoint either manager. Here’s how Patrick Vieira’s men fared during their 1-1 draw with Brighton at the Amex Stadium.
Jack Butland: 8/10
Butland had an eventful evening, and it started with him making a fantastic close-range save to deny Leandro Trossard the opening goal. He then saved a penalty from Gross and kept his composure in the goalmouth incident involving Maupay. He could not do much about the late own goal by Joachim Andersen. But overall, he will be satisfied with his display.
Joel Ward: 5.5/10
A steady performance from Ward despite the constant threat down his channel from Marc Cucurella. He was involved in the build-up to Trossard’s early effort and will thank Butland for saving his blushes.
Joachim Andersen: 4/10
Not the evening Andersen will remember, as he put on an erratic show at the back. He then scored that unfortunate late own goal, which cost Crystal Palace two points.
Marc Guehi: 6.5/10
Marc Guéhi’s game by numbers vs. Brighton:
46 touches
9 ball recoveries
5 duels contested
4 duels won
3 interceptions
2 fouls won
1 take-on
1 blocked shot
1 clearanceA busy evening. pic.twitter.com/7pgMBqYjxg
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) January 14, 2022
Guehi looked level headed in comparison to his central defensive partner Andersen. He kept things tight to keep a check on Brighton’s blistering attacking moves and covered the box well when called into action.
Tyrick Mitchell: 6/10
Mitchell was involved more in making defensive actions than he would have liked. His presence going forward was restricted due to the pressure mounted by Brighton around his own defensive area.
Conor Gallagher: 8/10
Gallagher was rather anonymous up until he popped up with a stellar goal to give Crystal Palace the lead in the second half. After the strike, he was more involved, winning a few tackles in midfield.
Conor Gallagher’s game by numbers vs. Brighton:
48 touches
7 ball recoveries
6 duels won
5 final third entries
3 tackles
3 clearances
1 shot
1 goalHis 7th goal of the season. ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/Hnj7akLEEP
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) January 14, 2022
Will Hughes: 5/10
Hughes was not quite at his best, and he was fortunate that Butland bailed him out after conceding a needless penalty in the first period.
Jeffrey Schlupp: 6/10
Schlupp was barely influential in midfield, but he did win a lot of aerial duels. His most important contribution was for the opener as his good work created the chance for Gallagher.
Michael Olise: 6/10
Barring a few bright moments, Olise might have liked to have a similar impact in the final third as he did in the recent FA Cup clash. Cucurella did well to contain him for most parts of the game.
Odsonne Edouard: 4.5/10
Edouard endured a quiet game by his standards, as his involvement was limited due to Brighton’s dominance on the ball.
Eberechi Eze: 5/10
Considering it was Eze’s first Premier League start since last May, he was fairly decent. The youngster seemed to grow in his role as the game progressed but will be somewhat disappointed for his lack of any real contribution in the final third.
SUBSTITUTES
Luka Milivojevic: 4/10
Milivojevic came on in the second half as Vieira looked to add a different dimension in midfield. The Crystal Palace captain barely had any impact on the game though.
Jean-Philippe Mateta: 4/10
Much like Milivojevic, Mateta did not carry any influence after coming on in the second half.
Christian Benteke: 5/10
Vieira wanted to have a player to hold the ball in the final third to ease off some pressure, and Benteke did a reasonable job in that respect.
