United End Selhurst Park Hoodoo With Second-Half Revival
Manchester United finally broke their Selhurst Park curse on Sunday, coming from behind to defeat Crystal Palace 2-1 and secure their first victory at the ground since July 2020. In what appeared to be following a familiar script of recent visits to South London, United produced a dismal first-half performance before staging a remarkable second-half turnaround.
Palace Domination and Penalty Drama
The match began ominously for the visitors, with Crystal Palace displaying significantly more energy and intent despite playing their second game in less than three days following a Europa League defeat to Strasbourg. Jean-Philippe Mateta proved a constant threat to United's defence, particularly troubling Matthijs de Ligt.
The breakthrough came from the penalty spot in the 36th minute. Mateta expertly controlled Adam Wharton's pass and was brought down by a clumsy challenge from Leny Yoro. The French striker initially sent goalkeeper Senne Lammens the wrong way, but referee Rob Jones ordered a retake after VAR spotted an accidental double touch. Under new rules introduced this season, Mateta was given another opportunity, which he calmly converted by placing the ball into the opposite corner for his ninth goal of the season.
Palace could have been further ahead before the interval, with Mateta missing two clear chances and Yeremy Pino and Daichi Kamada also testing United's resolve.
United's Set-Piece Transformation
The second half told a completely different story. After looking toothless in attack during the first period, United turned the game around with two set-piece goals within 18 minutes of the restart.
The equaliser arrived in the 54th minute. Joshua Zirkzee, leading the line in the absence of Benjamin Sesko and Matheus Cunha, scored his first Premier League goal in almost a year. The Dutch international controlled Bruno Fernandes' free kick on his chest while moving away from goal under pressure from Kamada, then produced a spectacular swerving volley that flew into the far corner past a stranded Dean Henderson.
The comeback was completed just nine minutes later. After Diogo Dalot was fouled by Marc Guehi, Mason Mount fired United ahead with a quickly-taken free kick. Fernandes touched the ball to his teammate, who drilled a low shot through the wall and inside Henderson's right-hand post.
United then professionally managed the remainder of the game, comfortably seeing out their lead against a Palace side that increasingly faded as the match progressed.
Significance of the Victory
For manager Ruben Amorim, this represented a crucial response following Monday's chastening defeat to 10-man Everton at Old Trafford. The victory temporarily moves United above Palace into sixth place in the Premier League table, providing a much-needed boost after a difficult period.
Amorim had made just two changes from the Everton defeat, bringing in Mount and Dalot for Noussair Mazraoui and Patrick Dorgu. The decision to bench Dorgu came after the manager had admitted the Dane appeared anxious whenever he touched the ball.
Speaking before kick-off, Amorim had emphasised the need for improvement: 'We improved the way we trained this week. We dropped the intensity in the last game and we tried to regain that.' While his team failed to deliver on that promise in the first half, their second-half performance ultimately secured a landmark victory at a ground that has caused them so much frustration in recent years.
