It was a gripping match – not full of exciting moves or a great number of chances, but full of tension lest Palace could grab three points or robbed of the one they more than deserved. It also featured one of the most negative Manchester United performances I’ve seen in 30 years; no wonder their glory-hunting fans were chanting for the attack even as Rooney & co. exited via the tunnel. However we should keep a sense of perspective – while there was barely an average performance from any Palace player, and mostly below-average from our visitors, we still just lacked that cutting edge to ram home our slender superiority and gain the win our efforts deserved.
Palace made four changes to the starting XI from Leicester: Ward made a welcome return at full back, but on the left side, allowing Kelly to switch to the right; Delaney replaced Hangeland in central defence; Zaha replaced Sako on the right wing; and Gayle returned for Campbell up front. When the match started it was noticeable that Cabaye was playing in the more advanced midfield role with Puncheon deeper, a risky move. United, lacking defenders, had Blind in central defence and Rojo & Darmian as full back, surely an invitation to attack the flanks. And, for the first 15 minutes or so Palace did little but attack in a sustained assault that had United wobbling – the first 60 seconds saw Bolasie just fail to get a shot off, but the ball rebounded to Gayle whose shot lacked real venom and was straight at De Gea. The real fun came when Bolasie found himself in space at a tight angle on the right. His shot smacked the face of the bar and stayed out and a follow-up effort brought a couple of corners, one of which saw Dann’s header tipped over then an almighty scramble at the loose ball. Would we regret not taking advantage of this spell?
The tenor of the match changed with a bad foul from Cabaye that brought a yellow card; deserved though it was the referee didn’t use it as a marker and although ready to book Kelly for a second foul was far more restrained when dealing with white-shirted offenders, who seemed to make it their task to rile Yohan into a second (red card) transgression. United then proceeded to keep possession for an awfully long time, with Palace barely getting a touch. Yet chances for United remained thin on the ground – there was a free kick from Rooney that brought a routine save from Hennessey, who then excelled himself by winning a one-on-one against Rooney when the latter was clear – given he’d conceded goals in the last two League games from similar situations this was important for our Wayne, while the United version seemed to hesitate at Hennessey’s advance, which summed up his disappointing display. Rooney wasn’t alone, most of United’s big players either failing to turn up or restricted by their manager’s instructions. Palace’s organisation in this period was crucial, and everyone worked hard at closing down United. Palace did claw their way back in before half-time, a bit of brilliance from Cabaye’s chest giving Gayle a half-chance that was saved by De Gea. Zaha in particular was fired up against his former employers.
There was one positional switch at half time, with Ward and Kelly switching flanks; Kelly had struggled a little against the talented Martial but hung on at the cost of a yellow card, so Pardew was looking to protect his right back. Zaha and Bolasie also switched more permanently. To our surprise it was Palace who embarked upon a period of possession and territorial advantage in the second half that lasted around half-an-hour. We pinned United back and our midfield & defence snuffed out most attempted attacks before they began. Rooney was frustrated, Martial policed by Ward, while Schneiderlin was unimpressive and World-Cup winner (they don’t count in South London, Pig Farmer!) Schweinsteiger only noticeable by the extra weight he was carrying. They were outclassed by Cabaye, McArthur & Puncheon, and the useful tactic of putting the ball behind their full backs. Ironically it was Cabaye, the best midfielder on the pitch, who missed the best chance of the match from a right-wing cross. Bolasie was more involved on the right this half, although Zaha forced the replacement of his full back, although Young had the pace to keep Wilf quieter. Another spell of pressure saw Dann head a corner just wide, the Bolasie looked to have broken clear to be denied by an excellent tackle, the ball rolling to Gayle whose shot was saved, and Puncheon’s follow-up found the side-netting.
Cabaye, living dangerously on a yellow card, was withdrawn by Pardew after his kicked the ball away – probably the fact it was for a Palace free kick saved him a dismissal – and was replaced by Jedinak; it may also have been a defensive measure to mark sub Fellaini. With less than 15 minutes remaining Rooney had United’s first effort on goal of the second half, putting a shot over. There was another header from Dann that looped over before United at least tried to appease their supporters, a block by Delaney & Ward preventing Hennessey actually having to make a save. Palace, working as hard at the end as they had all match, couldn’t summon up a winning attack and preserved the point they deserved.
Ratings:
Hennessey – 7 – Although Wayne was ludicrously underemployed for a United match, he did make a crucial save when Rooney was bearing down on goal, perhaps showing his studs put his namesake off. His kicking was decent and there was a sense of command & communication with his defence.
Kelly – 7 – Had a struggle against Martial but held on gamely despite a yellow card, had an easier ride when switched to left back. Made important interceptions and always tried to support his winger.
Ward – 8 – Decent spell at left back, looking to overlap, and then kept Martial quiet when switched to the right side. Important part of the defence.
Delaney – 8 – Had one of his easier games with little threat coming down the middle until late on. Was involved in a crucial late block and in the first half his no-nonsense defending saw the ball out. The Delaney diagonal was a useful weapon too.
Dann – 8 – Led the defence well, some outstanding interceptions late on.
McArthur – 7 – Strong showing in midfield that put United’s multi-million dollar assembly in the shade. Did a lot of the deep defensive work in the first half in particular, allowing Cabaye space to play.
Cabaye – 8 – The best midfielder on the pitch, which considering we had World Cup, European Championship, Champions’ League and Premier League winners on display was quite an achievement. The first 15 minutes he was simply everywhere until his edge was slightly blunted by a deserved yellow card. His spikiness perhaps contributed to his substitution but he stayed on despite attempts to kick & rile him into retaliation, an obscene side of the professional game. If only he had finished that great chance in the second half... (good for me as my keyboard notoriously has no “9” key!).
Puncheon – 6 – Only average in comparison to most of his colleagues, in part because his normal creative game was stifled by his early deeper positioning, but he stuck to an unfamiliar role well. Was slightly more advanced in the second half and did help Bolasie a lot on that flank.
Zaha – 7 – Started well on the right and looked fired up for the obvious reason, his play created chances & half-chances. Slightly less effective in the second half when he was mostly on the left, and Young had the pace to keep with him defensively. Won plenty of free kicks and worked hard tracking back.
Bolasie – 7 – Early effort from ridiculous angle which if it had been an inch lower would have been a goal of the season contender (a foot lower and De Gea would have been beheaded) but had a quieter first half than Wilf. Far more effective in the second half on the right when he opened up United’s defence on more than one occasion.
Gayle – 7 – Worked damned hard and won a surprising number of headers, but not just against Blind & also Smalling, which was more surprising. Had a couple of efforts on goal saved.
Jedinak – 6 – Late sub for Cabaye who helped close the game out.