Yahoo News Crystal Palace 0 Tottenham 1: Heartbreak for Roy Hodgson as Harry Kane's late goal boosts top-four hopes
It took until the 89th minute, but Harry Kane finally conjured the moment that ensured Tottenham Hotspur increased the pressure on Chelsea immediately before Antonio Conte’s side faced Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Running out of inspiration and short of ideas, it looked as though Mauricio Pochettino’s side would miss out on the opportunity to strengthen their top four challenge while Crystal Palace appeared set for a point that would help their relegation battle.
Relief and disappointment was felt in equal measure, then, when Kane rose to meet Christian Eriksen’s header at the far post and head past Wayne Hennessey who should have done better that tip the ball into the roof of the net.
It was Kane’s 35the goal of the season and while the display was by no means convincing, that will count for little if an additional two points make the difference at the end of the season.
For Roy Hodgson, there was only frustration at his side’s inability to hold on. Hodgson’s options had been severely limited by the loss of 12 senior players to injury.
The manager conceded he had never known a period when so many players were out with serious injuries during his career and with his squad stretched, was forced to field an unfamiliar back-four that included 20-year-old Aaron Wan-Bissaka for his debut at right-back.
It was hardly surprising therefore, that Palace looked decidedly shaky during the opening 20 minutes when they were guilty of committing a succession of errors that should have been punished more severely by Pochettino’s side.
Ben Davies, the Spurs left-back, found himself clear on goal after Andros Townsend failed to clear and believed referee Kevin Friend should have awarded a penalty after going to ground following a challenge by Wayne Hennessey, the home goalkeeper.
The clearest of the early opportunities though, fell to Harry Kane who was gifted a clear sight of goal after Patrick van Aanholt’s sliced clearance fell into his path. The forward was just eight yards out but Hennessey did well to divert the effort over the bar.
Palace improved as the half wore on, although an offside flag meant they escaped when Timothy Fosu-Mensah brought down Kane inside the box. Otherwise Spurs struggled to break down and increasingly strong defensive effort from Hodgson’s side.
The pattern was maintained in the second half but with Spurs’ hopes fading, Kane provided the decisive moment of the game.
Spurs into fourth
Harry Kane's 150th goal in all competitions for Spurs lifts his side into fourth at the expense for Chelsea, whose game against Man Utd kicks off in just under five minutes over here.
Full-time
Cruel on Crystal Palace but it was always going to be difficult to escape with a point after absorbing so much pressure.
Victory for Tottenham lifts them above Chelsea into fourth place while Crystal Palace remain one place above the relegation zone on goal difference.
Spurs are now unbeaten in 15 games in all competitions: their best run without defeat for 19 years.
GOAL!
Harry Kane peels off at the back post and heads Christian Eriksen's corner past Wayne Hennessey who finds himself in no man's land.
It's Premier League goal number 24 for Kane and heartbreak for Crystal Palace after surviving 87 minutes of pressure.
87 mins
Chung replaces Townsend for Crystal Palace and his first contribution is to gift the ball back to Spurs on the edge of his area. Palace manage to scramble the ball clear but Sorloth is unable to hold it up for his side.
85 mins
Riedewald loses the ball on the edge of his penalty area inviting all sorts of pressure. Harry Kane skips past two challenges before dragging his shot agonisingly past Hennessey's right-hand post.
Is it going to be one of those days for Spurs?
81 mins
Son is straight into the action, bursting clear of Palace's leggy midfielders but James McArthur is on hand to end the attack.
Spurs come straight back at Palace in the form of Son and the South Korean is able to force a corner. Hennessey fails to punch the ball clear and Kane works a bit of space for himself before unleashing a stinging shot which is well parried by the Palace keeper.
What a miss! Ben Davies fizzes a sharp low cross across the penalty area and Serge Aurier finds himself wide open at the back-post but the Ivorian scuffs the ball straight into the ground!
78 mins
Roy Hodgson yet to makes any changes but his Crystal Palace players will surely be tiring under this relentless onslaught.
More injury woe for Hodgson as James Tomkins scuffs a clearance and collapses in agony. Looked a very innocuous incident and the Crystal Palace manager will be hoping it's just cramp.
Meanwhile Pochettino makes his second change of the game, throwing on Heung-min Son for Mousa Dembele.
Tomkins is back on his feet but he's walking very gingerly as play gets back under way.
75 mins
Into the final 15 minutes and it's Crystal Palace on the attack this time. Van Aanholt finds himself in space down the left but his cross for Riedewald has too much on it and ball bounces off the former Ajax man.
72 mins
Fantastic save by Hennessey. The Crystal Palace goalkeeper has to be at full stretch to parry Ben Davies' low shot.
"He's diving again!" sing the home crowd as Alli collides with Wayne Hennessey in the penalty area. Kevin Friend takes a long look at it but decides the midfielder was already going down when Hennessey made contact. Big decision.
70 mins
Into the final 20 minutes at Selhurst Park and Crystal Palace will be absolutely delighted if they can hold on for a point.
A speculative long ball from Sanchez almost sets Dele Alli free on goal but van Aanholt scrambles back well to nullify the threat.
Both players are in the thick of it again as van Aanholt comes straight through the back of Alli. No penalty given but Kevin Friend calls both players over for a stern talking to as Alli squares up to the Dutchman.
Praise for Palace
They've ridden their luck so far but you've got to say Crystal Palace have been incredibly resolute in defence. Besides the odd individual error the back four have been admirably well-organised.
Mauricio Pochettino makes his first change of the game. On comes January signing Lucas Moura while Erik Lamela's 100th Premier League appearance ends prematurely.
64 mins
Spurs force another corner but Lamela's effort falls just short of the unmarked Harry Kane and Patrick van Aanholt is able to clear the danger.
The attacks keep coming from Spurs but they look as though they're running out of ideas.
Serge Aurier gets the biggest cheer of the afternoon as he completes a hat-trick of foul throws. Sensational amateurism.
60 mins
How long can Palace soak up this relentless pressure? We're into the final half hour at Selhurst Park and the home side look like they're hanging on.
Serge Aurier again finds himself wide open on the righthand side but Lamela over-hits his through ball.
Big shout for a Crystal Palace penalty! Sorloth goes clean through on goal but Serge Aurier covers around with a last-gasp sliding tackle. Replays show the right-back got a good chunk of the ball.
56 mins
Palace now finding it impossible to get out of their own half. Patrick van Aanholt attempts to find Riedewald in space down the left but the Dutchman's first touch is poor and Spurs are back onto Roy Hodgson's side.
Lamela slides in Aurier whose low shot is well parried by Wayne Hennessey and Crystal Palace are able to clear the ball.
Sorloth immediately breaks clear down the left. The Norwegian gets to the byline but his misses every red and blue shirt in the penalty area.
53 mins
Crystal Palace happy to sit back and absorb Tottenham pressure so far in the second half.
Patient Spurs passing sets up Christian Eriksen who flicks the ball onto Harry Kane who is wide open in the middle of the penalty area but, to the shock of the entire stadium, he side-foots the ball straight past Hennessey's back-post. Extraordinary miss for a man in such red-hot form.
50 mins
Scrappy stuff from both sides with neither team able to retain possession in midfield.
Eriksen's plays the ball inside Dembele who in turn plays in Ben Davies down the left-hand side. Davies' low cross is deflected into Eriksen's path but the Dane can only volley the ball over the bar.
48 mins
Spurs start the second half with a resumed sense of purpose, establishing themselves deep inside Crystal Palace's half.
Ben Davies gets to the byline but Palace remain compact and resolute at the back, clearing the danger.
A loose ball breaks to Harry Kane with acres of space in front of him, Tomkins back off and the England striker smashes the ball high and wide.
46 mins
Final words from messrs Souness and Carragher in the Sky Sports studio.
"These are the games you have to be winning if you want to win trophies," says Souness, while Carragher calls on the visitors to be patient and wait for a Palace mistake: "They (Tottenham) should be up, Palace, if it continues like this way you can only see Spurs winning because Palace have a mistake in them at the back."
Penalty debate
Graeme Souness and Jamie Carragher both convinced Harry Kane was unlucky not to be awarded a penalty in the first half.
Referee Kevin Friend was ready to award a spot-kick after Fosu-Mensah chopped down Harry Kane in the area, however the linesman decided the England striker was offside after Alli was adjudged to be the last player to touch the ball in the preceding challenge with James McArthur.
Souness far from happy: "I think it should stand! I think when McArthur and Dele Alli come together you can see Alli has played it off McArthur."
45 mins
McArthur does well to intercept an ambitious cross-field pass and quickly sets Andros Townsend away down the right. Townsend cuts inside Ben Davies before scuffing his left-footed shot straight at Hugo Lloris.
A long diagonal ball is headed in-field by Sorloth forcing a corner as Davinson Sanchez scrambles the ball behind. The resulting corner is headed clear with James Tomkins rising high at the back post.
Kevin Friend calls time on a fairly even first half at Selhurst Park. Despite enjoying over 77% of the possession Spurs have rarely threatened Wayne Hennessey with any meaningful efforts and, aside from the odd panic, Crystal Palace have been impressively solid at the back.
41 mins
Roy Hodgson vents his frustration at the fourth official as the linesman fails to award Crystal Palace a throw in after Serge Aurier appeared to have dribbled the ball out of play on the far right touchline.
Palace fans are soon smiling again as Aurier is pulled back for a foul throw, much to the amusement of the home crowd.
39 mins
Some patient Spurs build-up sets Serge Aurier away down the right. The Ivorian exchanges a neat one-two inside with Erik Lamela but his looping cross is gobbled up Wayne Hennessey.
36 mins
More encouraging from Palace. Christian Benteke steals the ball off Mousa Dembele (no mean feat) and lays it off to McArthur. The Scot looks to find Benteke again with a dinked through-ball but Lloris is quick off his line and slides to gather the ball, just about managing to stay within his penalty area in the process.
33 mins
Alexander Sørloth? Alexander Sor-sloth more like.
The Norwegian looks horrendously off the pace as he attempts to break away down Tottenham's right. The 22-year-old arrived in January and it's not really clear where his best position is.
He and Benteke both began the game with some semblance of energy but that seems to have faded with Spurs passing through the two strikers into their midfield at will.
30 mins
Huge relief for Crystal Palace as the offside flag prevents a certain penalty.
Sorloth's kamikazee pass on the edge of his own penalty area is easily intercepted by Lamela who threads the ball through to Harry Kane. Kane swivels on the ball goes to pull the trigger before Fosu-Mensah takes his standing leg but the linesman's flag comes to the home side's rescue, otherwise Kevin Friend was almost certainly preparing to point to the spot.
27 mins
Spurs earn a soft free-kick 10 yards inside Crystal Palace's half as Benteke is adjudged to have clipped Victor Wanyama.
Crystal Palace manage to win the ball back but then immediately cede possession in the middle of the park.
Erik Lamela tries to play Harry Kane in and the blocked pass falls perfectly to Dele Alli whose curled shot is well-blocked again by James Tomkins.
25 mins
Andros Townsend is finding plenty of joy down Tottenham's left side. The former Spurs winger skins Ben Davies and whips a fizzing cross in towards Sorloth but Serge Aurier covers around and heads the ball clear.
22 mins
Brief lull in the game with Tottenham happy to take stock and retain possession in midfield. Wanyama finds himself in the unfamiliar position out on the far right touchline and his twist and cross sails comically-high into the Holmesdale Upper.
20 mins
Serge Aurier whips in an early cross towards Dele Alli but the ball is well cleared by Tomkins.
Crystal Palace break away up the right wing through Andros Townsend who earns a free-kick after being up-ended by Erik Lamela. Townsend takes the resultant free-kick but he fails to beat the first man and Eric Dier volleys the ball away.
17 mins
Van Aanholt finds himself in space once again on the left but his cross is over-hit and is easily gathered by Lloris.
It's Tottenham who now find themselves under siege as Sorloth peels off Davinson Sanchez and aims a weak header back across goal and straight into the arms of Lloris.
15 mins
Tottenham are beginning to find their rhythm, here. If Spurs can avoid defeat today it will be their longest unbeaten run since George Graham was at the helm 19 years ago.
Crystal Palace riding their luck at the moment. Ali and Lamela exchange a series of short passes on the edge of Palace's penalty area before Was-Bissaka manages to clear the ball at the second time of asking.
Christian Benteke manages to hold the ball up providing some much-needed restbite for the home side. The Belgian lays the ball off to Patrick van Aanholt whose cross just evades the Belgian's dash into the box.
Palace have to get higher up the pitch but Benteke and Sorloth are not offering much of an outlet.
12 mins
Crystal Palace win another free-kick inside Spurs half. James McArthur clips another lofted ball into towards James Tomkins who rises highest to head the ball goal-wards but it's a tame effort and Lloris able to gather easily.
It's been a game of set pieces so far with lots of stoppages in play - should suit Crystal Palace although the home side are looking incredibly disorganised at the back thus far.
7 mins
Shambolic defending from Crystal Palace. No Premier League team has conceded more goals inside the first 15 minutes of games and you can see why.
Miscommunication between Wayne Hennessey and Andros Townsend sees Ben Davies sneak onto Christian Eriksen's chipped free-kick but the Welshman can only side-foot the ball straight back into a melee of Palace defenders and the ball is cleared. Replays show the Palace keeper clipped Davies after the ball was gone.
Just a minute later van Aanholt makes an absolute hash of clearing Eriksen's cross and the ball falls straight to Harry Kane but the striker's shot is well-smothered by Hennessey.
5 mins
Spurs go straight up the other end and earn a corner of their own but Erik Lamela's feeble delivery doesn't beat the first man.
Palace pressing Spurs high up the pitch in the early exchanges with Sorloth and Benteke doing their best to pressurise the visitors' back three.
3 mins
The first free-kick of the afternoon goes Crystal Palace's way as Victor Wanywama trips McArthur in midfield.
Luka Milivojević clips the ball out to Patrick van Aanholt whose early cross is deflected behind for a corner. Spurs manage to scramble the ball clear after a frantic free-for-all in the six yard box. Encouraging start for Palace.
Kick off
Here we go! Spurs get us under way.
Must say, Selhurst Park is looking absolutely resplendent in the south London sunshine.
It's the start of a particularly awful run of fixtures for Palace, with games against Man Utd, Liverpool and Chelsea in the next four games - so a positive result this afternoon is almost paramount if they're going to stay above the drop-zone.
Roy Hodgson speaks
On Wan-Bissaka's debut:
We've been very impressed with him and we think he's got all the qualities you need to be a good right back.
His chance has come a bit earlier than he would've thought but injuries have dictated unfortunately but we're confident he's well-equipped to play at this level.
On stopping Harry Kane
All you can do is try to be as compact as you can be in the centre of the pitch and try and reduce their opportunities in front of goal.
We'll try and restrict the time and space they have on the ball in the central areas.
Mind the gap
Tottenham could open up a 10-point gap on north London rivals Arsenal, who play Man City in the Carabao Cup final this afternoon.
The Dembele phenomenon
This, from our very own Sam Dean and Alistair Tweedale, is a fascinating profile on Mousa Dembele and how he became the most complete midfielder in the Premier League.
Here's a snippet:
Talk to those who have shared a pitch with Dembele and it is his strength that dominates the conversation. “Even in day-to-day training, he would not give the ball away,” says Zamora. “That on its own stands out, and his ability to go past people. I would not say he’s particularly quick, but it was his balance and his body strength. He carries his weight quite low and he’s so strong in the hips.
Tim Sherwood, who managed Dembele at Spurs, says the Belgian’s team-mates would fall about laughing in training because they simply could not take the ball away from him. “When I was his manager, I felt secure every time the ball was passed into him,” Sherwood says. “Some of them get it in their own half and you hold your breath."
Hodgson desperate for injury comebacks
Points for Southampton, Stoke and Newcastle yesterday means Palace are sitting one place above the relegation zone on goal difference.
But Hodgson remains adamant his side can pull clear of the drop zone when he can reduce his crippling injury list.
"What I have in mind, quite frankly, is that day when I have a full Palace squad to choose from - the same sort of squad I was choosing from in the months of October and November - I'm looking forward to that day," Hodgson said.
"At the moment, as far as I'm concerned, it's a question of trying to get through the games until I can feel that I have a team that perhaps is a little bit more relative or a bit more of a Palace team that we had a couple of months ago. At the moment, we're missing that enormously.
Bare-bones FC
With 12 first-team players on the Crystal Palace casualty list, Roy Hodgson has been forced to throw 20=year-old midfielder in at right-back.
It's a #CPFC �� debut for Aaron Wan-Bissaka. �� #CRYTOTpic.twitter.com/AfTOS2lCmS
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) February 25, 2018
Wan-Bissaka becomes the first Crystal Palace academy graduate to make a full league debut in 2148 days: 5 years, 10 months and 16 days since Kyle de Silva's full league debut in a 2-0 defeat by Southampton.
Crystal Palace team news
Injury-ravaged Palace are forced to name FOUR academy players in their matchday squad, with 20-year-old Aaron Wan-Bissaka making his full debut.
Here's how Palace line-up for today's game against @SpursOfficial! #CRYTOTpic.twitter.com/YC0PeTzkM4
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) February 25, 2018
January signing Alexander Sørloth starts up front alongside Christian Benteke as Wilfried Zaha continues his recovery from injury.
Team news
Tottenham are without Jan Vertonghen who misses the match after picking up a 'heavy knock' in training.
Toby Alderweireld, whose future remains up in the air, is out with a minor hamstring injury.
#THFC: Lloris (C), Aurier, Sanchez, Dier, Davies, Wanyama, Dembele, Lamela, Eriksen, Dele, Kane. #COYSpic.twitter.com/EU5ErIdLfb
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 25, 2018
Congratulations to Erik Lamela who lines up for his 100th Premier League appearance.
Preview
Tottenham travel to Selhurst Park knowing a victory will take them into the top four, with Antonio Conte's side playing Manchester United later in the day.
Crystal Palace's injury problems show no signs of easing ahead of Tottenham's visit to Selhurst Park.
Roy Hodgson revealed he still has 12 senior players out injured despite the team having a two-week break since their last match.
"In the 11 games still to play there will be lots of twists and turns," said the former England manager.
"I am thinking of the day when I will have a full Palace squad to choose from. For now, I am trying to get by with what I have.
"I still think the 11 players who start the game against Tottenham are more than capable."
Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino is anticipating a 'battle' in south London, with his side still on a high from their Champions League comeback in Turin a week ago.
"It will be a big battle. Roy and his staff are doing a fantastic job," said Pochettino.
"We need to match them in the areas of motivation, ready to fight and then of course try to deliver our way and our game.
"Of course it will be very tough. It will be very important to win the three points, fighting for the top four. The three points are massive for us."
