Man City stunned as Townsend stars in Palace win
Crystal Palace put three goals past defending champions Manchester City, including a stunning volley by Andros Townsend, to win 3-2 yesterday in the biggest upset of the English Premier League season so far.
Man City fell four points behind leader Liverpool with one round to go before the midway stage of the campaign as Townsend scored one of the goals of the season in City’s first league defeat at Etihad Stadium since April.
Palace hadn’t won a league game at City since 1990, had been beaten 5-0 on their two previous visits and went behind to a header from Ilkay Gundogan in the 27th minute.
Jeffrey Schlupp equalised for the visitors in the 33rd when he beat Ederson with a low leftfooted shot across goal, before a magnificent left-footed effort from Townsend put Palace ahead two minutes later.
A freekick won by Wilfried Zaha was lofted into the area and only half-cleared by City. The ball dropped invitingly to Townsend around 30 metres out and he met it with a ferocious volley that flew into the roof of the net.
Luka Milivojevic converted a penalty in the 51st after a foul by Kyle Walker on Max Meyer, as Palace led 3-1.
Palace had a nervous finish after City substitute Kevin De Bruyne made it 3-2 in the 85th with an apparent cross which Guaita couldn’t keep out. Gabriel Jesus headed over the bar as City
went close to grabbing a point but Roy Hodgson’s team successfully held out.
The defeat was City’s second in three league games and handed the title initiative to Liverpool, who won 2-0 at Wolves on Saturday. The two teams meet on January 4 (NZ time).
On a day of top-flight upsets, former England striker Jamie Vardy scored the only goal to guide Leicester to a 1-0 victory at Stamford Bridge and inflict fourth-placed Chelsea’s first home league defeat of the season as well.
Eden Hazard struck the crossbar in the first half and teammate Marcus Alonso hit the post late on as Chelsea lost at home to Leicester for the first time in 18 years.
In the late game, Manchester United’s post-Jose Mourinho era started in spectacular style, with a 5-1 crushing of hosts Cardiff City as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – who spent nine months in charge of Cardiff when the Welsh club was relegated in 2014 – had the most comfortable of rides in his first match as United’s interim manager.
Elsewhere, fifth-placed Arsenal drew level on points with Chelsea after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang struck twice in a 3-1 win over Burnley.
Southampton won for the second successive match under new coach Ralph Hasenhuttl when they claimed a 3-1 result at Huddersfield, while Watford ended West Ham’s run of four consecutive victories by winning 2-0 at the London Stadium.
Bournemouth won 2-0 at home to Brighton, and Newcastle’s home game with Fulham ended 0-0. India spin ace Ravichandran Ashwin remains under an injury cloud for the Boxing Day test against Australia in Melbourne while left-arm off-spinning allrounder Ravindra Jadeja is also carrying a niggle. Ashwin was sidelined with an abdominal strain for the second test in Perth and was sorely missed as Australia won by 146 runs to level the series 1-1. Ashwin will be monitored over the next 48 hours and so too will Jadeja, who India coach Ravi Shastri said yesterday had been unavailable for the first two tests due to complications arising from an injection in his shoulder.