CRYSTAL PALACE 4-0 MANCHESTER UNITED: Michael Olise inspired Crystal Palace to a thumping victory over a below-par Manchester United to raise the pressue on Erik ten Hag
Manchester United 's misery continued as they limped to a defeat at Crystal Palace on Monday night to stay eighth in the league with three games to go.
The damage was done before half-time, with Michael Olise and Jean-Philippe Mateta taking advantage of some generous defending from Erik ten Hag 's side. United had goals disallowed either side of the break, but were largely seconf-best to Oliver Glasner 's men.
Tyrick Mitchell added a third an hour in, turning home after Joachim Andersen fed the ball into his path. Olise scored the pick of the goals to make it 4-0, though, blasting home after Casemiro gifted the ball to Daniel Munoz in the build-up, and only a post kept Odsonne Edouard from adding a late fifth.
The defeat leaves Ten Hag's team down in eight, with their hopes of any European football next term hanging by a thread. For Palace, though, victory meant 13 points from a possible 15 as their impressive form under Glasner continued.
The defeat leaves Ten Hag's team down in eight, with their hopes of any European football next term hanging by a thread. For Palace, though, victory meant 13 points from a possible 15 as their impressive form under Glasner continued.
Olise opened the scoring inside 15 minutes, slicing through the United backline with ease before finding the bottom corner of Andre Onana's net. The visitors thought they were level when Casemiro's looping header landed in Dean Henderson's net, only for the goal to be ruled out for a foul on Henderson by Rasmus Hojlund.
It was two before half-time, with Palace winning a turnover near the halfway line and Mateta bursting past Jonny Evans before finding the net. United thought they had one back moments after the restart, but Casemiro had strayed well offside before tucking home the rebound after his first effort hit the post.
Palace looked relatively comfortable at 2-0, but made sure through Mitchell and then Olise's second. Here are Mirror Football 's talking points from a dream evening for Palace and a nightmare for their opponents.
1. Mateta's run continues
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Mateta's goal means he's now scored in six straight home games for Crystal Palace. He's scored nine since Oliver Glasner was appointed in February, having netted just three times in the league before then.
The Frenchman enjoyed a streaky spell in front of goal before joining Palace, starting the 2020-21 season with 10 in nine appearances for Mainz before moving to Selhurst Park. He managed just two goals in the whole of last season, though, making his recent run all the more remarkable.
Palace's best Premier League goal return as a team is the 51 they delivered in 2018-19. Monday's victory took them up to 49, with two games still to go as they look to pass that mark.
If you were thinking ' Bruno Fernandes doesn't tend to miss many games', you'd be right. This was the first ever Manchester United game the captain has sat out through injury, and, according to some reports, the first in his entire career.
In the absence of the Portuguese, United's midfield three of Christian Eriksen, Kobbie Mainoo and Mason Mount struggled to gain a foothold in the game. Indeed, Eriksen and Mainoo in particular were left exposed as Olise faced little resistance on his route through for the opener.
Mount might be the one United would have expected to step up, given his transfer fee. He was mostly anonymous, though, and will have to hope a proper pre-season can reinvigorate him after an injury-hit first season at his new club,
3. France can't afford to lose Olise
Michael Olise might have made his way through France's youth set-up, but he's yet to earn a senior cap for Les Bleus. On the strength of his football under Oliver Glasner, they may want to change that sooner rather than later.
Olise is also eligible to represent England, Nigeria or Algeria. Once he's cap-tied, though, those options will disappear for the Palace star.
While injuries have been a concern, Olise's form and raw talent puts him on a trajectory which would make him a match for most when he hits his peak. For context, he's younger than England pair Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka, while France's wide options Ousmane Dembele and Kingsley Coman have a good few years on him.
4. Evans and Casemiro left horribly exposed
Might Manchester United benefit from a season without European football? Regardless of your feelings, there's every chance that's what they'll get.
United's defeat leaves them down in eighth, with Chelsea opening up a huge goal difference gulf with their 5-0 victory over West Ham on Sunday. If Ten Hag's team lose their next two against Arsenal and Newcastle, that might be as high as they can finish despite a more welcoming fixture against Brighton on the final day.
That would leave an FA Cup final victory as their last remaining chance of Europe. And, based on how unconvincingly they scraped through the last two rounds, that's not something you'd back them to do.
