Crystal Palace booked their place in the FA Cup quarter-finals courtesy of a laboured win over Championship side Stoke City at Selhurst Park.
In his post-match interview, Patrick Vieira rightly suggested that his Crystal Palace players were not concentrating enough in their narrow 2-1 win over Championship side Stoke City in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Tuesday.
The game saw very few clear cut chances until Palace popped up with a fortunate opener through Cheikhou Kouyate. The Senegal international was lucky to see Jean-Philippe Mateta’s shot land at his feet and he hammered the ball from six yards out.
Palace’s lead was short-lived and it took just six minutes for Stoke to equalise through Josh Tymon, who levelled things up after some excellent play from Romaine Sawyers.
As the home team laboured to find the next goal, Crystal Palace substitute Jairo Riedewald came up with the goods. Stoke keeper Jack Bonham punched away a dangerous cross, but only as far as Riedewald, who slotted past the hapless stopper to earn his side a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals.
Overall, Vieira’s men will have to be much better as a more dangerous opponent awaits them in the next phase of the competition.
Jack Butland – 6/10
Butland barely had anything to do all evening, as Stoke found it difficult to break the Palace defensive line. He was commanding the box and claiming dangerous crosses, although he could do nothing about Tymon’s goal.
Tayo Adaramola – 7/10
Adaramola had an impressive full debut for Palace. He was put to work by Stoke’s attackers on his side but held his own defensively. He supported Wilfried Zaha going forward and produced some good-looking long balls hoping to find the strikers. Overall, it was a very good performance from the least experienced player in the side.
Marc Guehi – 7/10
Guehi captained the side and led by example from the back, putting in a composed display during which he was immense in possession. The centre-back is proving more crucial than ever for this Palace team.
Joachim Andersen – 6.5/10
Andersen was less busy than his partner at the back, although he was solid when called upon. There was one headed clearance off the line from Liam Moore’s 20-yard lob and he made a few crucial tackles to keep Stoke at bay.
Nathaniel Clyne – 5.5/10
Clyne had a decent game overall but made a positional mistake allowing Tymon to roam free and then subsequently score the equaliser. Palace certainly need their first choice star Joel Ward back as soon as possible.
Cheikhou Kouyate – 7/10
Cheikhou Kouyaté has scored his first goal since 2020 to give Crystal Palace the lead at Selhurst Park.
Still got it. ? pic.twitter.com/l8VhnTQw0c
— William Hill (@WilliamHill) March 1, 2022
Kouyate found himself in one of the busiest games from a midfield perspective. He was regularly involved and broke up play, while also helping out his backline whenever needed. The opening goal was also taken well by the midfielder, who was immense throughout.
Will Hughes – 5/10
Hughes, playing as the deepest player in midfield, found Kouyate doing most of his work. Over the last few games, he has not been able to assert himself in the position quite well, although there were a few bright flashes at times. He was also responsible for failing to deal with the Stoke cross that led to their equaliser.
Michael Olise – 7/10
A lively performance from Olise in a different position, as the attacker started in Gallagher’s midfield slot. Olise was direct in his approach and even came close to scoring in the second period. After his close call, he was the one who took the corner in the leadup to Riedewald’s winner.
Jordan Ayew – 5/10
A mixed bag of a performance from Ayew, who is finding it hard to make it into the teamsheet these days. He made one good chance for Olise in the first half and missed two decent opportunities to score.
Wilfried Zaha – 5.5/10
It was surprising to see Vieira start him when he could have rested Zaha. The Ivorian found it hard to get going against a rigid Stoke defence, especially in the first period. He did improve in the second half, but could not contribute much despite a fairly lively display.
Jean-Philippe Mateta – 6/10
Mateta had to feed off scraps as he was not given the proper service to make things happen in the final third. There were a few good long-balls from debutant Adaramola, but nothing transpired from them. He was heavily involved in the Palace opener as it was his shot that deflected towards Kouyate, who scored from six yards out.
Substitutes
Conor Gallagher – 6/10
Vieira took off Ayew for Gallegher, which let Olise back into his attacking role. The Chelsea loanee fashioned some notable chances, which his teammates were unable to get on the end of.
Jeffrey Schlupp – 6/10
He replaced Adaramola, as Vieira changed things looking for a potential match-winner. Schlupp was lively and made a telling contribution to the eventual match-winner.
Jairo Riedewald – 7/10
Jairo Riedewald has scored his first goal for Crystal Palace since February 2021.
Reinstates the Eagles' lead. ?#EmiratesFACup pic.twitter.com/7xJxKXW5gV
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) March 1, 2022
A good presence since coming on, Riedewald made the most important contribution in the game as he slotted home the winner late in the contest.
