Crystal Palace vs Burnley. Premier League.
Selhurst ParkAttendance24,042.
Report and free highlights as second-half goals from Chris Richards, Jordan Ayew and Jean-Philippe Mateta provide new Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner with the perfect start to his reign; Burnley captain Josh Brownhill was sent off in the first half
Saturday 24 February 2024 18:29, UK
Oliver Glasner ignited his reign as Crystal Palace manager as 10-player Burnley were brushed aside 3-0 at Selhurst Park.
Glasner watched on as Palace scored three goals in nine second-half minutes to ease their concerns of a dogfight at the bottom.
Josh Brownhill was shown a straight red card in the first half after hauling down Jefferson Lerma as the last man (35), but it wasn't until Chris Richards met Jordan Ayew's cross with a stooping header that the home side took advantage (68).
Having proved obdurate opposition for the best part of half an hour either side of the break, Burnley's defensive wall was breached and Ayew turned goalscorer to meet substitute Matheus Franca's low cross just three minutes later.
The Clarets looked a beaten side, and matters got worse when Vitinho hauled down the lively Franca inside the box. Jean-Philippe Mateta sent James Trafford the wrong way to complete a convincing win (79).
David Fofana was denied a late consolation when his instinctive finish was ruled out by VAR after Lorenz Assignon was deemed to have interfered with Sam Johnstone's line of vision from an offside position.
The result moves Palace up to 14th in the Premier League - eight points clear of the relegation zone - while Burnley stay in 19th on 13 points, eight adrift of safety.
Glasner said: "It was important to stay patient today. It was a fantastic first-half but it was still 0-0. I told them we would create our chances to score and we had a great impact from the substitutes.
"We know this is something we can build up our ideas, we can work the next weeks, and it's also important to stay humble now. We know it was a very good performance, but they could also see many things we could improve and we will continue working on it."
Glasner warned he was "no magician" as he prepared for his first game in charge of the relegation-threatened side.
While there will no doubt be changes coming at Selhurst Park, the Austrian's message in his first press conference at times echoed his predecessor Roy Hodgson who, in the weeks leading up to his departure last Thursday, liked to remind critics that he did not have a "magic wand."
There were only flickering signs of improvement during a goalless first half. Lerma fired over inside the opening two minutes while both Odsonne Edouard and Joachim Andersen missed presentable back-post chances.
But the game's big turning point came with 10 minutes of the opening period remaining when Brownhill took drastic action after a poor pass into him from Trafford. Referee Lewis Smith, officiating for only the second time in the Premier League, showed Brownhill a straight red card for a professional foul.
Edouard's subsequent free-kick only just cleared Trafford's crossbar as Kompany got his men to the break level.
Glasner, who led Eintracht Frankfurt to Europa League glory in 2022, takes over a Palace side missing a trio of their most influential players, and in recent weeks playing in front of an increasingly disillusioned fanbase.
He will have encouraged more of the same from his players at the restart, but his side might have had their numerical advantage wiped out when Adam Wharton - cautioned for a tug on substitute Josh Cullen - slid in on the same player in front of referee Smith. The Burnley players surrounded the match official but Wharton was let off the hook.
The January deadline day signing from Blackburn then very nearly made the most of his reprieve as he curled a shot over from Lerma's pass. Glasner was ruthless as he then replaced the £22m new recruit in a double change that included Franca - and Palace broke the deadlock not long afterwards.
Naouirou Ahamada, Wharton's replacement, drew a smart near-post save from Trafford but from the ensuing set piece, Ayew's deep cross was headed in by Richards. The relief was palpable, the mood lifted, as Palace steamrolled Burnley en route to their biggest win of the season.
Franca, who left illustrious Brazilian club Flamengo last summer to join Palace on a five-year deal worth up to £26m, looked eager to impress his new manager as his run and cross was tucked home by the alert Ayew having evaded the boot of Mateta.
The Palace striker would get the goal his performance deserved, however, as after Vitinho felled Franca inside the box, it was Mateta who tucked away the penalty.
Vitinho's weaving run in the closing stages saw the ball flicked into the net by Fofana but VAR ensured Burnley were denied a consolation goal on another disappointing afternoon for Kompany's side.
Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner: "The players from the beginning, the players who came into the game, and also the bench, you can feel this. There was a good spirit. You are more often than me at Selhurst, but for me it was 'wow.'
"Before the game in the locker room, what kind of spirit the players showed, what kind of power they showed, and for me it was 'wow' again when I entered the stadium before the game.
"In such an environment you're able to show your best performance. I don't think it was our best performance, but it was OK for the start. I was not concerned [about struggling to create opportunities against the low block]. We had the balance. It worries me if we lose it."
On working 'David Copperfield' magic as substitutions led to goals: "We were worried about Adam Wharton as the next foul he would be been sent off, so Adam Wharton was David Copperfield today. The players performed well and the bench. You could feel the good spirit."
On celebrations - were they exuberant? "I can't remember myself. I think I stopped [a run down the touchline] as I have a problem with my Achilles!"
Burnley boss Vincent Kompany: "It's difficult to play in a game of this magnitude with 10 men. It's something we couldn't afford today but it happened. It's then difficult to summarise what happened afterwards. This one hurts but we have to pick ourselves up. The over-riding disappointment is we had such a key event that we had to avoid.
"It's not about apologising [to the fans]. You do your work really hard every day so it's not about apologising. It's easy to give the first pump when you're winning 12 games in a row and we made a big effort of being humble during that and it's the same now.
"You have to front up. It's a sign of respect, not a gesture. If I was a fan, after a performance where you've lost after coming with hope, if the players then ran off the pitch I'd feel even worse. The belief is not going to change, definitely.
"There's 250,000,000 who play football in the world so the odds of getting into the Premier League is so small as a player. Smaller than staying up, so the belief will remain."
Sky Sports' Ben Grounds at Selhurst Park:
It was no secret that Glasner wanted to come to the Premier League. He turned down offers from big German clubs to grab the opportunity of managing Palace. This was always on the cards, always the next stop for those who know him well.
Though the Austrian joked Palace chairman Steve Parish "didn't tell me to win the Premier League", he is serious about a side he felt had not yet reached their full potential.
It is an exciting prospect having a manager who has won the Europa League and has got teams into the Champions League.
He took charge of his first Palace training session only on Wednesday and referenced the famous American illusionist as he said: "I'm no magician. I'm not David Copperfield."
But judging by his first 90 minutes in charge, the Selhurst Park faithful will be confident of more miracles being worked by the amiable 49-year-old.
Glasner had a meeting with league officials in which he checked to see where his naturally expressive nature on the touchline might get him into trouble, but here there was no reason to get carried away. He oversaw a professional job with minimal fuss.
Some in SE25 may not have known much about their new manager prior to this week, but for now those supporters have no evidence to doubt him after this perfect start.
Jordan Ayew has been involved in 10 Premier League goals for Crystal Palace this season (4 goals, 6 assists); only the second time he's reached double figures, previously doing so with the Eagles in 2019-20 (11).
Indeed, he's now scored in successive games in the competition for the first time since June 2020 (run of three).
Crystal Palace visit Tottenham in the Premier League next Saturday at 3pm. Meanwhile, Burnley host Bournemouth on Super Sunday; kick-off 1pm.
