- Player ratings as Palace lose to Bournemouth
- An awful first half
- Player’s minds clearly eslewhere
Crystal Palace travelled to Bournemouth in the Premier League on Sunday [3/5/26] afternoon, and lost by three goals to nil in a drab performance at the Vitality Stadium. Despite the fixture holding little significance for Palace’s season, the first half performance in particular was unacceptably poor, with zero shots for Palace until the second period of the game.
Bournemouth took the lead through a Jefferson Lerma own goal, before a controversial penalty was awarded to Marco Senesi who appeared to foul himself. Alas, Kroupi stood up to score his third of the season against Palace.
An improved second half from Glasner’s side failed to produce any chances of great magnitude, and despite less intensity from the hosts, they eventually found a third goal through Rayan.
Whilst the result will be pushed to one side and mean little going forward, there were concerns from some performances, as Palace limped to defeat.
Player Ratings
Dean Henderson – 5
Unfortunate not to keep out the own-goal, and whilst not at fault for the penalty as he didn’t actually commit a foul, he could have simply held onto it. His kicking and distribution was poor but he made a handful of good saves to keep the scoreline down.
Daniel Munoz – 4
Not much to say after he was withdrawn at halftime. Munoz was basically absent for the entire first half, as Palace failed to even get the ball into Bournemouth’s half, let alone any of their players.
Jaydee Canvot – 4
Was booked early on which felt like a harsh decision, but he, like the majority of his teammates, was poor in possession. His defensive work was not as imperious as it has been in recent weeks, and he struggled on the opposite side of the back three to where he has spent the majority of the season.
Maxence Lacroix – 6
Palace’s best player on the day, which doesn’t say much. Ten defensive contributions and 100% tackle success rate, Lacroix can hold his head high after that defeat, because he was one of the few players not to embarrass themselves.
Chadi Riad – 6
I was pleased to see Riad back in the side, and I think he did well for periods of the game. He was forcing the play long far too often but his one on one defensive work was strong, seeing out Rayan on numerous occasions and recovering well with his pace.
Justin Devenny – 3
He played on both the left and right hand sides in this game, but struggled in both halves massively. His defending was weak and inconsistent, and he floated a leg in far too often, showing little conviction and intensity to win the ball back for his side.
His crossing was abject at best, and his passing generally was poor. He looked tired, despite not playing for months.
Jefferson Lerma -2
Potentially one of the worst individual performances of the season from a Palace player. Returning to his former club, Lerma seemingly forgot which side he was playing for as he converted a truly remarkable own goal to put Bournemouth ahead.
His presence in midfield was almost pointless. He contributed next-to-nothing defensively and when he got on the ball, he lost possession far too often, consistently smashing overhit long passes straight off the pitch.
Daichi Kamada – 5
Similarly to Munoz, Kamada just wasn’t given a chance to get into the game. His passing was strong and he was one of the few Palace players looking to get on the ball and influence the game in the first half.
Yeremy Pino – 4
Was barely involved in the game at all. No final third influence, no defensive contributions and barely any ball progression either. A performance which summed up Palace’s afternoon.
Brennan Johnson – 5
Similarly to Pino, Johnson struggled to influence the game, but if I was going to be fair I’d say he certainly tried harder than most of his teammates. As always with Johnson, he seems to be doing the right things deeper on the pitch, but simply freezes when he reaches the final moments of an attack.
Jorgen Strand Larsen – 6
Again, not the worst performance from Palace’s record signing. He was given essentially no service whatsoever in the first half and before his withdrawal on 65 minutes he looked the most likely to create a chance to score.
Substitutes
Palace and Glasner had pre-planned a number of substitutes ahead of Thursday’s second leg, and so whilst some decisions made little sense, they can be excused as being pre-planned.
Tyrick Mitchell (Halftime sub) – 6
Easily Palace’s best defender, only making one error when he gave up possession to Rayan late on. His presence instantly impacted the game, offering Palace an attacking outlet but also solidifying their left hand side defensively. He was probably the most creative player in the second half, and that serves as a simple reminder to his importance in this side.
Adam Wharton (Halftime sub) – 6
Again, reintroducing the quality into the side, Wharton helped to get the ball moving. Whilst his passing was not at its best, Wharton certainly encouraged a more positive approach, demanding the ball and playing fast forward passes through the lines.
A good 45 minutes in his legs ahead of Thursday.
Isamila Sarr (Halftime sub) – 6
Sarr came close to scoring a consolation late on when he slammed a strike into the post. His performance did reflect that of his side, but his introduction definitely causes the Cherries issues. Hopefully he can continue his form on Thursday.
Jean-Phillipe Mateta (65th min sub) – 5
Held the ball up relatively well but hardly the most transformative of Mateta performances.
Chris Richards (76th min sub) – n/a
