Warnock decides to make two changes, as Hoilett is replaced by Arter.
90' +1
A. Gunnarsson enters the game and replaces Camarasa.
The fourth official indicates an additional three minutes at the end of the 90 for stoppages.
Camarasa is replaced by Gunnarsson with two minutes remaining.
90'
Van Aanholt gets into the penalty area after a giveaway just outside the box, but his left-foot effort is beaten away by Etheridge!
86'
WHAT A TACKLE! Zaha shows his pace as he bursts past the entire Cardiff side before entering the penalty area. As he shapes for a near-post shot, Ecuele Manga dives in and makes an inch-perfect sliding tackle which pokes the ball away from the striker and out for a corner!
84'
Van Aanholt manages to get a shot off from just inside the penalty area; the strike making its way through the crowd of bodies. Etheridge sees it the whole way however and lays out to make the grab.
82'
Etheridge makes an important save as Zaha cuts inside from the left and rolls a shot towards the far corner, forcing the goalkeeper to dive and push it away for a corner.
77'
Camarasa gets yellow.
Townsend wins a free-kick just outside the penalty area in a central position after falling under challenges from both Ralls and Camarasa – but it’s the latter who gets the card.
75'
Cardiff get the ball into a good position on the edge of the penalty area via a deep free-kick, but Morrison’s headed flick-on is flagged immediately, and Crystal Palace can clear their lines.
71'
Hoilett charges into Zaha and wins none of the ball, sending the forward to the ground. The referee awards Crystal Palace the free-kick just inside Cardiff’s half but fails to produce a card despite the Canada international already being booked. He’s very lucky – and will have to keep his aggression in check as we enter the final 20 minutes.
Minute
Description
69'
Etheridge has a free-kick just outside his penalty area which he angles deep into Palace territory on the left. It’s a terrible attempt despite the good idea, as it goes directly out for a throw-in to the hosts.
67'
WICKHAM WIRES WIDE! Zaha plays a pass into the penalty area which splits two defenders and somehow gets to the foot of McArthur who immediately touches a pass towards Wickham, whose back is to goal. The substitute swivels quickly and has a blind shot which looks to scrape the outside of the post on its way behind.
65'
ZAHA MISSES ON THE VOLLEY! Townsend’s cross is a good one to Wickham, who gets involved immediately and sends his header backwards to the far post for Zaha – who attempts an audacious volley from an acute angle which has the power – but certainly not the accuracy.
63'
C. Wickham enters the game and replaces M. Meyer.
The first substitution of the match sees Meyer depart for Wickham in a direct and attacking change.
61'
CAMARASA GOES OVER! Horrible finishes at either end as Reid controls a cross that comes in from the left, before laying it off to the midfielder – who strikes it unconvincingly from outside the penalty area, sending it high into the sky.
59'
MEYER GOES OVER! An absolutely fantastic touch by Wan-Bissaka gets him past two Cardiff defenders before laying off the ball to Meyer, who gets inside the penalty area and has a shot which flies over the top of Etheridge’s crossbar. More poor finishing from the two sides today as the attack breaks down to nothing.
57'
Cardiff have the ball around the Palace 18-yard box, but Camarasa isn’t given a second to breathe on the ball, and Meyer jumps in to win the ball and relieve the pressure.
55'
ZAHA FORCES A GREAT SAVE! After another bit of trickery, Zaha manages to work enough room in front of Ralls to have a near-post strike which forces Etheridge to get down and close the angle. The Palace forward stays down after getting the shot off – holding his shoulder – but he gets up after a breather and looks able to continue despite slight discomfort.
53'
Hoilett races down the right, looking to make amends for his earlier error, but Van Aanholt is in a great position to just tap the ball out for a throw-in. Morrison is up from the back to take the high throw – which is met at the first time of asking by the head of Sakho.
47'
Hoilett has a strike at goal from just outside the 18-yard box, but it’s a lazy roller that Guaita handles without a problem.
46'
Cardiff get the match restarted from the kick-off!
45' +2
HALF-TIME: CRYSTAL PALACE 0-0 CARDIFF CITY.
Milivojevic clips in the free-kick, looking for the head of a team-mate but Morrison stands firm and gets in a clearing header, which ends the half.
45' +1
J. Hoilett gets yellow.
Hoilett takes down Van Aanholt with a heavy challenge and gives Palace a free-kick outside the Cardiff penalty area with seconds remaining in the half. The referee also produces a yellow for the winger.
45'
The fourth official indicates an additional minute for stoppages at the end of the 45.
40'
Reid catches Sakho sleeping and gets the ball near the penalty area after the centre-back misplays a pass, but the striker can only take a shot which is deflected immediately.
38'
Meyer receives a pass with his back to goal and swivels before hitting a shot which immediately cannons off the legs of Morrison and back out of the area. Cardiff are living on the edge at the moment.
36'
After another bit of play around the Crystal Palace penalty area, Ralls opts for a strike with his left, which curls right into the grateful arms of the goalkeeper. The visitors have come into the match slightly with 10 minutes remaining, but they are still a bit too predictable in attack.
33'
Sakho sprays a lovely ball forward for Zaha who gets onto it just as the ball touches the byline. He manages to keep it in and side-steps the right-back, before losing possession in the centre of the penalty area as the Cardiff bodies pile back to defend their goal.
31'
S. Bamba gets yellow.
Cardiff are passing the ball around the Palace penalty area, but they are unable to make anything happen as Townsend comes back to help defend and ends up winning the ball. Bamba steps in and fouls Kouyate during the counter-attack, and receives a yellow card – after giving the fourth official a piece of his mind.
28'
Van Aanholt gets his signals crossed as he attempts to play a ball through for Townsend – who halts his run just as the pass is made. The result is a goal-kick as another Palace attack breaks down.
26'
Hoilett charges towards the penalty area after a lay-off from Reid and has a shot which skips off the turf before bouncing into the arms of Guaita. It’s a decent effort, but Cardiff will have to be much more inventive.
24'
OVER FROM TOWNSEND – AGAIN! Van Aanholt gets free on the left flank and cuts a low pass back, towards the top of the penalty area for Townsend to latch onto – which he does with eagerness. The left-foot effort ultimately rises high and over the bar, however, giving Etheridge a goal-kick.
22'
Reid is finally involved, but it’s not in the way he would have wanted as he’s pushed to the ground during an aerial duel in his own half. He wins his side a free-kick with which to clear their lines.
20'
Cardiff should be happy that they’ve survived the first 20 minutes without conceding, but they need to offer much more going forward. Reid has been absolutely anonymous, with poor service from both flanks not aiding in his search for goals.
16'
More great work from Palace as Wan-Bissaka cuts inside, leaving his marker flat-footed before centring it to Townsend. His shot is from a great position, but a deflection on the way through takes the sting out of the shot – and Etheridge can make the save.
15'
Brilliant work by Palace’s young full-back as Wan-Bissaka completes a couple of stepovers before firing in an impressively accurate cross. Etheridge is equal to the delivery however and makes his presence known – clearing it immediately.
13'
Meyer swings a corner to the near post for Sakho, but Cardiff pack the penalty area and clear it at the first time of asking.
11'
Zaha looks to be in peak form today as he takes a chipped pass down and shepherds it against the challenge of a Cardiff midfielder before bursting past him and looking for an opportunity to split the opposing defence.
9'
Palace have started the match very brightly, attacking with pace and power at every opportunity. Their win last week against Manchester City has certainly buoyed their spirits – as they are taking the game to their opponents.
7'
ZAHA FIRES WIDE! The free-kick is taken short down the right wing to Zaha, who uses his trickery to sidestep two defenders on his way inside, before firing a laser that just misses the keeper’s right-hand post.
6'
It’s Bamba who’s the latest to give away a free-kick as Townsend uses his speed to try and get past the defender, only to be brought down cynically. It’s just inside the Cardiff half, but Milivojevic is shaping for a cross.
5'
Peltier comes through Meyer to win the ball – but only makes contact with the outstretched leg of the Palace midfielder – giving the hosts a free-kick in their own half.
1'
Palace kick off and we are under way
Hello and welcome to our LIVE commentary of the Premier League fixture between Crystal Palace and Cardiff City!
Crystal Palace enter the third of four matches in 10 days as they host Cardiff at Selhurst Park, off the back of a frankly unbelievable victory over Manchester City – partly in thanks to Andros Townsend’s goal-of-the-season candidate. Roy Hodgson has his side in 14th place, three points behind Brighton & Hove Albion at the start of play today.
With 17 goals, Crystal Palace have scored fewer goals than only Newcastle of all the sides above the relegation spots. Despite finally winning a match without talisman Wilfried Zaha – a 1-0 win over Leicester City 11 days ago – he is still the Eagles’ main attacking threat, providing skill and quickness that is very evidently missed when he isn’t present.
Should he play, Cardiff City will provide a very fertile hunting ground, as only rock-bottom Fulham have conceded more goals. Despite entering today in 17th place, it can be said that the newly promoted side from Wales are overachieving, with experienced campaigner Neil Warnock getting the most of a squad that isn’t the most talented.
Losers of their last two matches, Cardiff last time out came up against a newly reinvigorated Manchester United side under the direction of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The ensuing 5-1 defeat was their first by a margin greater than two goals since a 4-1 at the hands of Liverpool in October – and could seriously dent the confidence of a side looking to just stay in the top flight by any means. A win against Palace today would bring them to within a point of the London club in 14th – a great position from which to attack the second half of the season.
CRYSTAL PALACE SUBS: Connor Wickham, Jordan Ayew, Jeffrey Schlupp, Julian Speroni, Scott Dann, Jason Puncheon, Joel Ward.
CRYSTAL PALACE XI (4-4-2): Vicente Guaita; Patrick van Aanholt, Mamadou Sakho, James Tomkins, Aaron Wan-Bissaka; Max Meyer, Luka Milivojevic, Cheikhou Kouyate, James McArthur; Andros Townsend, Wilfried Zaha.
With 15 minutes before kick-off, the team news has been confirmed! Let’s start with the home side.
CARDIFF CITY XI (4-1-4-1): Neil Etheridge; Lee Peltier, Sean Morrison, Bruno Ecule Manga, Joe Bennett; Sol Bamba; Kadeem Harris, Victor Camarasa, Joe Ralls, Junior Hoilett; Bobby Reid.
CARDIFF CITY SUBS: Aron Gunnarsson, Gary Madine, Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, Harry Arter, Greg Cunningham, Alex Smithies, Josh Murphy.
The two sides go into the interval level, but there has really been only one side in this contest. Crystal Palace started the match better – hitting the crossbar after only three minutes. Further chances for Townsend and Zaha put the visitors under a huge amount of pressure, but they were just lacking that clinical finish in front of goal. They are slicing through the Cardiff midfield easily – which will certainly lead to goals in the second half, as long as they maintain their high intensity.
Cardiff City should be very pleased with the score after 45 minutes, as they remain level despite offering very little in the match. The attack is very route-one from the Welsh side, as Warnock has very obviously told his players to shoot at any sight of goal – allowing Guaita to make a couple of very comfortable saves. They’ll have to be cleverer after the restart, and get their tricky wingers involved more, as Hoilett and Harris have been anonymous. It’s still anybody’s game though, with a crucial three points hanging in the balance.
Crystal Palace host Chelsea next Sunday, while Cardiff City’s upcoming fixture is a meeting with Leicester City on Saturday.
That concludes our commentary of the Premier League fixture between Crystal Palace and Cardiff City! We hope you enjoyed it!
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