EPL: Eberechi Eze wins day for Crystal Palace against Leeds United

Eberechi Eze’s classy goal 14 minutes from time secured Crystal Palace’s second Premier League win of the season as they came from behind to beat Leeds at Selhurst Park.

Neither side went into the game with any kind of form after sharing just four points from their last eight Premier League matches combined, and Palace started the game like a team hovering above the relegation zone, showing nerves throughout the team as they allowed Pascal Struijk to give Leeds an early lead.

But Odsonne Edouard equalised soon after against the run of play and Palace were a team transformed in the second half, sealing all three points when Eze drilled a finish past Illan Meslier in the 76th minute after combining joyously with Wilfried Zaha on the edge of the Leeds area.

Palace’s win moves them up to 15th in the Premier League – three points above the relegation zone – while Leeds drop to 14th and are now winless in five matches.

How Eze earned Palace vital win

No one can doubt the good work done by Patrick Vieira since he replaced Roy Hodgson at Crystal Palace at the start of last season and the Eagles’ tricky start to the season – their opponents had an average league position of 6.86 before Sunday – meant a position just above the bottom three was not being treated with too much concern.

Still, a home game against a Leeds side without a win since August represented a vital opportunity for Palace to get three points on the board and, thanks to an impressive second-half performance, Vieira’s side did just that.

They did not start like a team scrapping for points, though, with Vicente Guaita a bag of nerves with the ball at his feet and his team-mates unable to keep the ball when they did gain possession.

It did not take long for Leeds – who looked far sharper than their hosts in the first half – to take advantage, with Brendan Aaronson allowed to dribble into the area and fire in a shot that came back off the post to Struijk, who was given the freedom of the penalty area to put his side ahead.

Edouard’s equaliser from Michael Olise’s excellent outswinging free-kick was executed perfectly but came out of the blue, and Leeds continued to dominate until half-time.

However, whatever Vieira said to motivate his side at the break worked and they quickly wrestled momentum away from Leeds before finally turning the game around through Eze, who played a glorious one-two with Zaha, dummied past a defender and then fired a shot past the stranded Meslier to give the home fans a long-awaited win.

Source: Skysports