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Player Ratings As Crystal Palace Earn Big Point At Elland Road
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- Player Ratings As Crystal Palace Earn Big Point At Elland Road
Crystal Palace travelled to Elland Road on Sunday with many neutrals writing off any chance of Pierre Sage's side collecting any points at all after the form that Leeds had been in ahead of the game.
Whilst on paper a 0-0 draw looks rather timid, there was a sense that Palace were unlucky not to take all three points, especially after Mitchell saw his goal disallowed for an extraordinarily tight offside call.
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Palace defended with composure and organisation, creating plenty of attacking chances throughout and were comfortably the better of the two sides and will feel that if anything, they were unfortunate not to come away with a win.
There were a number of stand out performances throughout the game, with another tight race for the man of the match award.
Player Ratings
Walter Benítez - 7.5
This rating is only limited due to how little Benítez had to do during the game, but when he was called upon he was fantastic. He has begun to command his box with significantly more authority, and made a truly excellent save to deny Dominic Calvert-Lewin from a matter of yards.
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His distribution was much stronger too, and despite him not taking the goal kicks himself, the long passes he played from the initial set were finding Strand Larsen with consistency.
Anan Khalaili - 6.5
A strong defensive performance from Khalaili but his attacking play felt somewhat tentative at times, often opting to turn back and pass towards the central defenders instead of taking on his man. His delivery was strong when he made that choice, and the ball he put into the box for Mitchell's disallowed goal was dangerous, however he had strayed inches offside.
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Overall it felt like he was limiting himself somewhat, and with more confidence he could have had a more productive afternoon.
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Chris Richards - 7.5
A strong performance from a player who has failed to impress so far this season. Coming up against a Leeds side who not only have a lot of height in their ranks, but also play for set pieces, the focus and organisation of Palace's backline was vital in their quest to keep a clean sheet.
Richards won 100% of his aerial duels and contributed an impressive eight clearances. He was burned for pace by Noah Okafor in the first half a few times, but he did recover well enough to prevent any significant danger to his goal.
Takehiro Tomiyasu - 6
Tomiyasu was withdrawn at halftime due to injury, but his overall performance in the first half was a quiet one. The Leeds play in attacking transitions was almost exclusively in wide areas, and as the central centre back, Tomiyasu was rarely needed to intervene as either Richards, Canvot, or one of the wing backs dealt with the danger first.
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Jaydee Canvot - 7
A much improved performance from Canvot which almost justified Sage's prior decisions in itself. Canvot looked full of confidence and put in a high energy, all-action performance. His consistency when duelling for the ball was not great but he defended the box resolutely, making six clearances and numerous recoveries too.
The physical nature of the game actually suited him really well, and it was great to have him back in the side driving forward with the ball and progressing the side.
Tyrick Mitchell - 8
A really strong display from Mitchell, as he seemed to be constantly involved in almost every duel on the pitch, especially in the second half. His defensive performance was excellent, and he worked exceptionally hard to get up and down the flank to provide attacking support as well as defensive cover.
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He took his goal excellently and was unlucky for it to be chalked off. The overall level of his play this season has been truly remarkable, and he just seems to keep getting better.
Quinten Timber - 8.5 [MOTM]
Sunday was my first time watching Quinten Timber in person, and I have to say I was blown away. The amount of ground that he covers is mindblowing. He'll go from making a tackle on the edge of the opponent's box to making a crucial intervention inside Palace's.
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The force he tackles with is incredible, I don't think it's like anything I've seen before. The brute force that he uses, yet without fouling, had the home fans incensed which only adds to his rating. In terms of forward play he was also excellent, and created plenty of chances.
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It feels like everything good about this Palace side at the moment has Timber at the centre of it.
Adam Wharton - 8
A much more controlling performance from Wharton in this game, it also felt like he was at the centre of a lot of the positive play. He is forming a really strong relationship with Timber and it was particularly enjoyable to watch them almost team up on opposing players, one tackling and one escaping with the ball.
He was demanding the ball a lot more and played some really smart first time passes into the box which the forwards failed to capitalise on. Despite that, it was a much improved performance from Wharton who can now enjoy some time off after not being selected for the England squad.
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Daichi Kamada - 7
Kamada came the closest out of anyone else to scoring for Palace aside from the disallowed strike, but he couldn't quite contort his body to guide his effort on target. His overall energy was a good fit for the game, and whilst his lack of pace did see the Palace attack slow down on occasions, his inter-play with the other forwards was very neat and tidy.
On another day Kamada scores a brace and we're talking about a MOTM performance, but whilst this didn't happen, I was still impressed.
Yerémy Pino - 7
There seems to be a new found confidence to Pino's game in recent outings, and that was on display again at Leeds. There doesn't appear to be any fear in his game anymore. He drops in and demands the ball and is not afraid to take players on and create chances.
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Whilst the final ball was not quite consistent enough across the entire side in this game, Pino once again demonstrated that he is an exceptional talent that could do very well for us this season.
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Jørgen Strand Larsen - 6.5
A slightly lower rating than his attacking teammates purely on the basis that both did more in the final third, but I do think that Strand Larsen played well. His hold up play has been heavily criticised this season, and this could be down to some people taking that far too literally.
JSL occupied central defenders throughout the game, and his presence alone was a huge reason why Palace were able to win so many second balls throughout the game, which were in turn a consistent trigger for attacking moves. His play and movement inside the box itself was slightly restricted in this game, and he didn't really get into any positions where he had strong chances to score, but it was by no means a poor performance.
Substitutes
Jefferson Lerma - 8
Wow. A seriously monstrous cameo off the bench from the Colombian. In terms of performance it was reminiscent of the FA Cup Final, in terms of his pure defensive volume and the consistency of his contributions.
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He essentially bullied Okafor to the point of substitution, and then did the same to whoever Leeds attempted to face up against him.
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The highlight of his performance however, was when he made the decision to handball/rugby tackle/ assault the Leeds attacker when they looked to break away late on. Truly superb.
Ismaïla Sarr - 4
The one learning from Sarr's appearance is that this injury which so many fans assumed was purely fictional was in fact real. The only way to describe his performance is that he was running like a man trying not to trigger a groin issue, and that's coming from a man who had many groin issues in his football playing years!
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Despite the squared ball from Nketiah undoubtedly coming as somewhat of a surprise to him and being played behind, Sarr had to do better to divert it goalwards.
Eddie Nketiah - 5
Added enough of a threat for the final ten minutes or so but I have to ask, what on earth was he thinking when he decided not to shoot in that chance late on. Played in on goal with the chance to win all three points for your side, just minutes after coming off the bench, and he decided to pass it square, behind Sarr, mindblowing.
