Mateta: This team never gives up
Jean-Philippe Mateta said the resolve which Crystal Palace showed against Everton made him proud to be a member of this side.
Under 72 hours since sealing their place in a European final, the Eagles faced yet another tight turnaround this season, hosting an Everton side pushing for a high finish in the Premier League table.
Twice they trailed – but twice they fought back, as goals from Ismaïla Sarr and Mateta – off the bench in the second-half – secured a valuable point from an entertaining game.
Jordan Pickford was in fine form in the Everton goal to deny Palace all three points, but in the end, the Eagles were left satisfied with a draw.
Mateta said after the game: “I'm still annoyed about the chances, but it’s okay – we came back two times and I think we deserved that point.
“This is Crystal Palace. We had the game on Thursday, and we wanted to win today and we nearly won, but in the end it's one point.
“We never give up, and that's why I'm happy to be with this team too.”
On his late opportunity to score another – which saw him chip Pickford, but also the crossbar – Mateta added: "Yeah, I tried to chip, but I think [James] Tarkowski moved me again. I was not stable, but yeah, I should have scored that goal, but next time I will score."
We can show you we are Palace, and we never give up
—JP Mateta
Mateta also hailed the Palace supporters, added: "Today, like always, they were fantastic.
"They help us a lot. Even me, when I come in, I always sing with them, and yeah, they support us, like always."
Palace face Manchester City in three days' time, with Mateta adding that Palace will continue to play with energy: "Yeah, it's always good to have games.
"We play a lot. The whole season, we play a lot. Me personally, I like to play every three days. It's good for me. Yeah, we play a lot.
"Today, you can see Everton, we'd played like 20 more games than them. We still have energy, and I was tired in the end. We can show you we are Palace, and we never give up."