LONDON: Eddie Nketiah scored twice on Crystal Palace’s party night as they celebrated their FA Cup triumph in style with a 4-2 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League on Tuesday.
Palace’s last home game of the season came three days after they beat Manchester City at Wembley to claim the first major silverware in the south London club’s history and there were euphoric scenes as they hit back to take the three points.
The carnival atmosphere was interrupted briefly when Wolves took the lead through Emmanuel Agbadou’s 24th-minute header but Selhurst Park was really rocking when Nketiah struck twice in the space of five minutes before halftime.
Ben Chilwell’s free kick deflected off of Agbadou’s head to make it 3-1 in the 50th minute and the noise in the stadium barely diminished when Wolves reduced the deficit with a glancing header from Jorgen Strand Larsen.
Twelfth-placed Palace, who made six changes to the side that started against City, brought on Cup final goal hero Eberechi Eze in the 81st minute and he put the icing on the cake with a clinical angled finish after a jinking run.
Oliver Glasner’s side have 52 points, the highest total Palace have collected in the Premier League, and they will end a momentous season at champions Liverpool on Sunday.
After the historic events of Saturday it looked like Palace might be suffering an FA Cup hangover when Agbadou’s header from a corner just about crossed the line.
Nketiah came off the bench at Wembley and had been on the fringes at Palace but he was given a start and took full advantage to score his first league goals for three months.
Three minutes after Palace fell behind, former Arsenal forward Nketiah received a cut back from Romain Esse and fired a shot past Wolves keeper Dan Bentley who could gave done better.
Nketiah was at it again soon after, guiding in a low cross by Ismaila Sarr for his 50th senior career goal.
“We’re buzzing, we’re happy and it’s a massive day for us. Our manager was keen to keep it going and keep the celebrations going. Everyone was firing and we got the win,” Nketiah said.
“The unity between the fans and the players is amazing and it will be amazing to have European nights here.”
It was a memorable night for Palace’s long-serving defender Joel Ward who wore the captain’s armband in his last appearance for the club after a 13-year stint.
Palace’s FA Cup win means they will play in next season’s Europa League.
Nketiah and Eze on target on Palace party night
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Nketiah and Eze on target on Palace party night
- There was a carnival atmosphere at Selhurst Park
- Palace’s FA Cup win means they will play in next season’s Europa League
Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad claim difficult victories to close SPL Matchday 18
- Mailson makes nine saves as Al-Nassr edge past Al-Taawoun
- Defending champions Al-Ittihad get back on track with win against lowly Al-Okhdood
RIYADH: It was far from a comfortable night for Al-Nassr as they came up against an Al-Taawoun side that has been one of the surprise packages of the season under Pericles Chamusca. Ultimately, an own goal by Mohammed Al-Dossary proved enough to secure all three points for the hosts.
Al-Nassr started off in blistering fashion. Less than two minutes after kick-off, Cristiano Ronaldo rattled the crossbar with a volley after he was picked out by a long ball from Mohamed Simakan.
Moments later, the roles were reversed. Ronaldo delivered a floated free-kick over the back line, finding Simakan, who headed past Mailson, only for the assistant referee to raise his flag with the French defender marginally offside.
Fresh off leading Senegal to AFCON 2025 glory, Sadio Mané returned to the starting XI and immediately caused problems down the left flank. His combination play proved key, with a threaded pass in the 25th minute setting up Ronaldo for a dangerous chance that Mailson did well to beat away.
Mailson continued to frustrate the Al-Nassr attack, producing a fingertip save to deny Mané in the 43rd minute, after a moment of brilliance from Ronaldo down the left.
Mané finally found the breakthrough on the cusp of half-time, with a dipping cross aimed towards Ronaldo misdirected into Al-Taawoun’s net by Mohammed Al-Dossary.
The second half saw Al-Nassr push further in search of a second goal. A series of chances from João Félix, Ronaldo and Mané were stopped by the Al-Taawoun defence, with Mané also striking the post in the 58th minute.
Ronaldo thought that he had won a penalty after being brought down by Waleed Al-Ahmed in the 62nd minute, only for the linesman to raise his flag for offside.
Despite being 1-0 down and facing the risk of slipping five points behind second place, Al-Taawoun showed little attacking intent, registering just three shots across the 90 minutes.
Al-Nassr remained on the front foot but were unable to find a second goal, as Mailson produced one of his best showings this season, making nine saves on the night.
Elsewhere, Al-Ittihad edged a 2-1 victory against 17th-placed Al-Okhdood in Jeddah following a dominant first-half display. Houssem Aouar netted the opener for the hosts before N’Golo Kanté powered in a second.
Burak İnce pulled one back for the visitors in the 59th minute as Al-Okhdood capitalised on Al-Ittihad’s relatively sluggish second half showing.
In Qassim, Al-Hazem pulled off a late 2-1 comeback against Damac to move further away from the relegation zone. The result lifts them into 11th place on 20 points as Damac remain 15th with just 11.
Matchday 19 gets underway on Tuesday, with Al-Ahli facing a stern test in Al-Ettifaq as they continue their pursuit of league leaders Al-Hilal. On Wednesday, Al-Hilal travel to Dammam, faced with the task of an in-form Al-Qadsiah side led by Brendan Rodgers.
