Crystal Palace took on Nottingham Forest on Saturday with a massive three points on the line, here are five things we learned.
It looked early on that Oliver Glasner was going to have an enjoyable afternoon as Crystal Palace went 1-0 up through Jean-Philippe Mateta early on.
Eberechi Eze got the assist after being found by Jefferson Lerma in the box.
But the lead wasn’t kept, as Chris Wood drew the sides level in the second half with a looping header over Dean Henderson.
This is how the game finished, a 1-1 draw for the sides to share the spoils.
Here are five things we learned from the game…
Over-reliance on Eberechi Eze
Eze was brilliant against Nottingham Forest, as he assisted Mateta’s terrific opener.
Everything seemed to go through the Palace No. 10 as he played the role of a general in the attacking midfield.
This has almost turned into an over-reliance on Eze for Palace, as we saw for years with Wilfried Zaha and it heightens the need for Michael Olise to return.
His afternoon could’ve been even better as he had a few sights of goal but Mats Sels denied him.
READ MORE: Who is Michael Olise? The Crystal Palace wonderkid that Chelsea, Arsenal and Man City missed
Jefferson Lerma unbeatable in midfield
As often seems to be the case these days, Lerma impressed as he proved an immovable object in midfield.
Winning the ball back high up the pitch and containing Forest within their half for large periods.
This winning the ball back saw Lerma play a pivotal role in Mateta’s opener as he won the ball back before picking out an excellent pass to Eze.
Jean Philippe-Mateta scores once again
One of the biggest benefactors of Glasner’s arrival at Selhurst Park has been Mateta, as he’s been on fire since the Austrian arrived.
Three goals in four games under Glasner for Mateta, and the latest was the best of the bunch.
An emphatic strike which left the goalkeeper zero chance as it nestled in the top corner will have sent a real message to Glasner.
With a striker on the cards this summer, Mateta is doing his very best to prove it’s not a priority position.
Squad depth is a real concern for Glasner
It was glaringly evident in the second half of Palace’s shortcomings in squad depth.
Despite the starting 11 looking strong, that means nothing if the bench is so weak and this summer it must be rectified by Dougie Freedman and co.
In order to move further up the table, Palace can’t have the likes of Jeffery Schlupp coming off the bench and some progressive, talented forwards must instead be brought in.
Daniel Munoz quickly becoming a fan favourite
One man who didn’t stop running for Palace and ended up even featuring at left-wing, was Daniel Munoz as he put in a great display.
Munoz seemed to be everywhere, covering ‘every blade of grass’ as Lee Hendrie remarked on USA commentary.
Every action he made was greeted by chants of his name as he consistently won the ball back and his work rate was phenomenal.
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