Crystal palace vs Southampton highlights
Watch Crystal palace vs Southampton highlights as Ebere scores against Southampton in a premier league meeting at St. Mary’s stadium on Saturday fixtures.
As Crystal palace is placed on the 12th position of the points table, Southampton is placed on the bottom of the points table. Crystal palace had a third straight win after the start of the Roy Hodgson and Defeated Southampton.
Eze’s double goals on the second half in the match against Southampton with 2-0 and making them drown to the bottom of the points table.
Palace were the last of the 92 teams in England’s top four divisions to win a league game in 2023 but their struggles under Patrick Vieira are now a distant memory.
The 24-year-old had become a peripheral figure during the reign of Vieira, with his recall to Palace’s starting XI coinciding with the team’s upturn in form.
Playmaker Eze, who was signed from QPR by Hodgson in 2020, told the club website: “I think he has just given us the confidence in what we’re good at. We know what we can do. We know what we’re capable of, and he’s given us the licence to go and do that.
“We’re playing with a lot more freedom, more energy, and we’re so much more positive, which is a huge credit to the gaffer coming in and helping us with that.”
Eze was the star turn, converting from close range after Gavin Bazunu had parried Jordan Ayew’s cross into his path to break the deadlock in the 54th minute.
Ruben selles On postmatch interview
Ruben selles said,”We’re disappointed not to get anything from the game. We played well in the first half but we didn’t match the same tempo in the second. We conceded the first goal and started to make some errors. After the second goal, we weren’t able to come back.
“I saw a team in the first half that was together and we were trying to think quickly in situations but we then didn’t match the tempo. When we are behind, we’re then in a race and playing catch-up.
“Those are the stressful moments we have to manage better as a team. They show me every day [in training] and they show me how they can play. We just need to be more consistent in what we do.
On having a natural striker, Selles added: “No, I don’t think it would make any difference. The way we arrive at chances doesn’t indicate that we need a natural striker. Joe Aribo played as a striker in the final of the Europa League last year so that’s why we chose him today to play in those spaces.”
“I’m not frustrated [with the fans]. I just feel we need the support from them and in those situations in particular when there is nothing happening in the game, we need their support. They have their opinion and their voice. It’s not been a good season for us and they can express that in the way they want. It was not frustration. I was just trying to get them behind us – nothing else.”
Roy Hodgson on postmatch interview
“All we do at half-time is remind people what we’ve agreed to do from the start. But goals change games. They put us in a commanding position and we were then capable of playing the football we wanted.
We had opportunities to score two or three more. Had Southampton scored when they struck the post, it would’ve made for an exciting final 10 minutes which I could do without!”
“The back four were excellent throughout the game as well as the goalkeeper. Keeping a clean sheet gives us a platform as I wouldn’t like to be playing against us going forward given the quality we have.
It’s a big strength that we have and we will continue to work on those strengths. With every point you get more comfortable as we’re inching towards a total we feel is enough for us to stay in the league. We’re not there yet.
“Our defending shape was much better in the second half. Their defenders had too much time in the first half and we played higher up in a more compact shape in the second period.
They found it harder to find the gaps and when we got the ball back, there was more time for us. We’ve got players who can use that time on the ball after the first half had been a little bit frantic.”
