Ismaila Sarr netted late on to help his Crystal Palace side nick a 1-0 victory over Ipswich in an entertaining affair at Selhurst Park.
With Palace fans wondering where the goals would come from without their leading marksman Jean-Phillipe Mateta, when Sarr celebrated his clever dink over Alex Palmer with a trademark corner flag kick, they had their answer.
In a near carbon copy of the reverse fixture at Portman Road, where Ipswich were pegged back by a Mateta goal in the second half, it was a largely back-and-forth afternoon.
There were chances for both sides before the clock had even ticked past five minutes played. Ipswich keeper Palmer was called upon first to keep out Eddie Nketiah, who led the line from the off, when he made himself big to deny the Palace man one-on-one.
Moments later, Dean Henderson decided anything Palmer could do, he could do better when he kept out Jaden Philogene from close range with a firm hand.
Lively evolved into manic, when Jacob Greaves avoided a red card when he pulled down Ismaila Sarr on the edge of his area. While Sarr felt he was denied an opportunity at goal, VAR stuck with on-field referee Simon Hooper’s decision to issue a yellow card for the Ipswich centre-back.
The entertainment continued into the second period with both sides pushing for a breakthrough. Eberechi Eze watched on in anticipation when his effort from distance cannoned off Dara O’Shea to loop over Palmer and knock the post.
Down the other end, Liam Delap’s header from a corner drew out an unconvincing stop from Henderson that allowed Philogene to try and fire home the rebound but Sarr was ready on the line to clear. Within minutes, Sarr had glanced a header of his own wide of the mark from a corner. However, it was a miss he made sure not to repeat when he popped up with the winner.
Ipswich see their survival hopes continue to fade while Palace move above Brentford into 11th place in the Premier League.
Glasner: Sarr celebration shows our togetherness
Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner:
“It was a tough game to play and we expected a tough game because Ipswich is doing well. I don’t think their results mirror their performances.
“It was exactly the game we expected and then we missed a few chances. Then the game gets harder, but I’m really pleased that we stayed patient and waited for the next situation.
“We missed the first, we missed the second, we missed the third, we missed the fourth, but we waited for the one and then we scored an amazing goal with Ismaila. His celebration just shows the great spirit in the group, the great togetherness, the great characters we have. Three Premier League wins in a row, four wins in a row in all competitions.”
McKenna: There was a gulf in quality and experience
Jaden Philogene missed a glaring opportunity early on in the game
Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna:
“Crystal Palace have won the game with, again, a fantastic moment from Sarr. I think it’s unlucky from our point of view, but also he showed why he has played at a really good level for a good period of time and played in the Premier League for a few seasons because his acceleration is outstanding and his touch to get into that position and then takes it really well.
“Our group we know is, if you’re talking about the forwards and the front line today, you’ve got Jaden (Philogene), just turned 23, Liam (Delap), 22, Julio (Encisco), just turned 21, Jack Clarke, just turned 24, Omari (Hutchinson) comes on, just turned 22.
“But it’s a lot of talented young players and to have that at Ipswich Town is a really positive thing, but it also means they’re not going to be the finished product. If they were the finished product, they wouldn’t be at Ipswich Town.”
