If you needed a gentle reminder of just how unforgiving Premier League football can be, Saturday afternoon on Merseyside provided a brutal refresh.
Crystal Palace left the Hill Dickinson Stadium nursing bruised ego and zero points following a 2-0 defeat to Everton.
On paper, it looks like a routine, forgettable opening-day loss. On the pitch, it felt like a frustrating rusty pre-season legs, missing clinical edge, and the lingering shadow of a chaotic transfer window.
Dominance without the punch
For long stretches of the first half, Pierre Sage’s side actually looked like the better football team. Moving away from the rigid patterns of the Oliver Glasner era, Palace controlled 58% of the ball and played with a fluid build-up that genuinely unsettled Everton.
The chances were there. Four big ones, to be precise. Eddie Nketiah watched in disbelief as Jordan Pickford tipped his curling effort onto the post, and Jean-Philippe Mateta really should have scored when sent clean through, only to rattle the woodwork himself. Palace nearly doubled Everton’s expected goals, but football doesn’t care about xG if you don’t stick the ball in the net.
Everton took their moment three minutes before the break. Daniel Muñoz failed to clear his lines properly, and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall lashed a thunderbolt straight into Dean Henderson’s top corner. One moment of hesitation, bang, game changed.
A defensive lapse and a deflating blow
The second half started in worst possible fashion. Just eight minutes after the restart, poor box organisation allowed Thierno Barry to drift between Chris Richards and Jayvee Canvot, heading home Iliman Ndiaye’s cross directly under Henderson’s feet. Simple, avoidable, and utterly self-inflicted.
Then came the moment that truly sucked the life out of Palace’s afternoon. In the 72nd minute, Chadi Riad collapsed in a heap following an awkward collision with Barry. Watching him stretchered off, clutching his knee, was a sickening sight especially given his history with severe injuries. The long delay flattened what little rhythm remained, and the away end was left fearing the worst.
Even in stoppage time, Jørgen Strand Larsen saw a six-yard header brilliantly clawed away by Pickford. It was just one of those days where the ball refused to go in.
Off-field noise and pre-season rust
Context matters here. Sage wasn’t making excuses before kickoff when he warned that 13 players returning late from World Cup knockout runs meant Palace were weeks behind in conditioning. It showed in the final quarter-hour as energy levels cratered.
Add in the circus surrounding Ismaila Sarr absent amid claims of a strike to force a Galatasaray move, which Sage insists is purely “medical” and the unsettling noise around potential departures for Muñoz and Mateta, and it’s clear the squad is in flux. With a week left in the window, central defence is now a critical emergency. Riad’s injury means Palace may need three centre-backs before the deadline, not just two.
Looking ahead
It’s too early to press the panic button. The patterns of play are promising, the chance creation was genuinely encouraging, and the fitness will come as the World Cup stars catch up. But with Manchester City visiting Selhurst Park next weekend, Pierre Sage needs quick answers, a settled squad, and a bit of luck on the medical front.
