Crystal Palace were left disappointed last night as they slumped to a 2-0 defeat against Southampton in the third round of the EFL Cup.
Alan Pardew rotated his side quite a lot but still fielded a very strong side, so it was a disappointing performance from Crystal Palace on the night.
The turning point of the game came early on, as Scott Dann pulled his hamstring in the first half, meaning that Martin Kelly was brought into the action, playing in an unusual role for him at centre-back.
The substitute came on and scythed down Shane Long in the area shortly after his introduction, leading to Charlie Austin opening the scoring from the penalty spot.
Southampton youngster Jake Hesketh doubled the hosts’ lead in the second half after some defensive mishaps at the back from Palace, making it 2-0 and sailing Saints into the next round.
Here’s how we rated Palace’s performances on the night.
Wayne Hennessey - 6
Hennessey was helpless with the goals and couldn’t really do a lot on the night.
Joel Ward - 5
Ward was left exposed last night and was unable to cope with the relentless Southampton attack.
Scott Dann - 6
It would have been a different game with Dann on for 90 minutes. However, when he was on, he was solid and it was a shame to see him come off injured.
Damien Delaney - 5
Delaney was ran ragged. Shane Long’s raw pace and movement completely outdid him for the whole game.
Zeki Fryers - 6
Fryers was sound defensively but offered little going forward. Quiet.
Wilfried Zaha - 6
Zaha looked bright but was largely stifled by Matt Targett.
Yohan Cabaye - 4
Shambolic.
Jordon Mutch - 5
Not great, really. Lost the ball a lot and was taken off.
Lee Chung-yong - 5
Don’t recall him doing anything productive whatsoever. Below par.
Bakary Sako - 4
Looked unsure of where he was playing, wasteful on the ball and pretty lathargic.
Connor Wickham - 6
Imposed himself on Jose Fonte well. Not his fault he had no service.