Report: Palace beaten by Leeds at Elland Road

Summary:

• Glasner names completely changed XI from side which faced KuPS 48 hours earlier.
• 17: Rodon goes close twice in quick succession to opening the scoring for Leeds.
• 19: Perri denies Nketiah at the culmination of a flowing Palace move.
• 25: Struijk is next to have a chance from a set-piece, but heads wide.
• 38 – Goal: Calvert-Lewin is denied by Henderson but sweeps home the rebound.
• 45+4 – Goal: Calvert-Lewin heads in from close range after another long throw.
• HT: Leeds 2-0 Palace
• 51: Stach’s goalbound effort is blocked near the line by Mateta.
• 60 – Goal: The ball trickles through for Ampadu to stab home from close range.
• 66: Henderson denies Struijk before Guéhi and Lerma combine to clear off the line.
• 84: Uche miscues his finish before Pino has a snap-shot deflect wide.
• 85: 16-year-old Drakes-Thomas comes off the bench to become Palace’s youngest-ever Premier League player.
• 90+2 – GOAL: Devenny scores from the spot after Uche is clattered by Perri.
• 90+4: Devenny then hits the post with a glancing header from Lerma’s cross.
• 90+11 – Goal: Stach converts a late free-kick for Leeds.
• FT: Leeds 4-1 Palace

Following multiple rearrangements, Palace’s first trip to Elland Road since April 2023 kicked off just 48 hours after their previous match against KuPS Kuopio at Selhurst Park.

As a result, Oliver Glasner struck true to his word by naming an entirely different starting XI for the game, with five of those players having been involved – all as second-half substitutes – on Thursday.

Leeds, meanwhile, had gone into the game following an upturn in their fortunes. After losing eight of their first 13 Premier League matches this season, Daniel Farke’s team were unbeaten in their last three, including a 1-1 draw at Brentford six days prior.

On a chilly winter’s night five days before Christmas, although the opening quarter-of-an-hour was light on chances, there was no lack of competitive edge to the contest.

It was Leeds who had the first two opportunities after 17 minutes, both falling to centre-back Joe Rodon.

After Ethan Ampadu hurled a long-throw into the Palace box, the ball bounced between several players, allowing Dominic Calvert-Lewin to shepherd it back towards Rodon – his low effort took a nick on the way through, and whistled wide of the bottom corner.

From the subsequent set-piece, Rodon climbed highest at the far post – but nodded wide when he perhaps ought to have at least hit the target.

Palace looked to hit back with a delightful flowing move too, kick-started by Adam Wharton’s backheel into the path of Yéremy Pino. The Spaniard spun and laid off to Jean-Philippe Mateta, who in turn played it into the path of his strike partner Eddie Nketiah – from the edge of the box, his low effort stung the palms of goalkeeper Lucas Perri.

In truth, however, neither side created much from open play – set-pieces the dominant attacking force in the first-half, with Pascal Struijk next to go close for the hosts with a header from a corner.

Palace threatened in patches, but the clearer chances were consistently going the way of the hosts.

Leeds duly took the lead on 38 minutes, a long throw from Ampadu being flicked on inadvertently by Chris Richards into the path of Calvert-Lewin. Six yards out, his first finish was well kept out by Henderson – but the in-form forward could scarcely miss the rebound.

At that point, Palace needed to get to half-time.

But with fewer than 30 seconds of stoppage time remaining in the first-half, a sucker punch: another long throw from Ampadu, flicked on high by Jaka Bijol towards an area where Calvert-Lewin was on the charge – and he was able to head in from close range.

With half-time arriving moments later, Glasner sent on Jefferson Lerma at the break.

But when play restarted, Leeds continued to be a constant threat from set-pieces, with Anton Stach’s low effort inside the box needing a block on the way through by Mateta.

Sadly, it felt like the next goal was only going to come from one team – and Leeds duly got it on the hour mark when a corner, initially headed out to the edge of the box, was nodded back through a crowd of bodies for Ampadu to stab home from close range.

Six minutes later, Leeds could’ve had another – moments after Rodon’s effort deflected just wide of Henderson’s far post, the goalkeeper produced a brilliant save from Struijk, before Lerma and Marc Guéhi combined to shovel the ball off the line amidst a scramble.

Nketiah did have one promising effort on the half-turn which flew over; substitute Christantus Uche mis-timed his finish from a promising position; and Pino saw one snap-shot deflect wide of the post; but in truth Palace were beaten by that point.

There were still silver linings to be had.

With 85 minutes on the clock, Joél Drakes-Thomas came off the bench to become Palace’s youngest-ever Premier League player, his 16 years and 194 days surpassing the record set by David Ozoh (17 years and 260 days) in January 2023.

And then, as the game ticked into stoppage time, Uche raced onto a prod forward by Wharton and – rounding the ‘keeper – was taken down by Perri. Up stepped Justin Devenny to send the ‘keeper the wrong way from 12 yards.

Moments later, in a similar move to that which saw him score on Thursday, the Northern Irishman raced onto Lerma’s in-swinging cross from deep, glancing his header against the base of the post.

But despite that late momentum, there was a late twist of the knife as – moments after VAR overturned a late penalty call for Leeds by virtue of Borna Sosa’s challenge being outside the box – Stach stepped up and found the top corner with the free-kick.

A calendar year in which we had collected more Premier League away points than any other side concluded with a rare off-day for the Eagles.

Leeds: Perri (GK), Bogle (Justin, 80), Gudmundsson, Ampadu (Gruev, 87), Struijk, Rodon, Calvert-Lewin (Piroe, 87), Aaronson (Tanaka, 77), Bijol, Stach, Okafor (Gnonto, 77).

Subs: Darlow (GK), Harrison, Bornauw, Byram.

Palace: Henderson (GK), Richards, Lacroix, Guéhi, Clyne (Sosa, 65), Wharton, Hughes (Lerma, HT), Mitchell, Nketiah (Devenny, 77), Mateta (Uche, 77), Pino (Drakes-Thomas, 86).

Subs: Benítez (GK), Canvot, Rodney, Esse.

As It Happened