A PAT ON THE BACK
Vieira delighted with win
PATRICK VIEIRA’S celebrations along the touchline proved this was no end-of-season dead rubber for the Crystal Palace boss.
Having witnessed Wilfried Zaha come off the bench to score in the dying seconds, the Frenchman could scarcely contain his delight.
Okay, it was not quite Jose Mourinho style but Vieira running and jumping for joy after super-sub Zaha sealed a superb fightback showed what it meant to him.
For the first time this season the Eagles had come from behind to win – and with fit-again Eberechi Eze also on the scoresheet, it completed a marvellous afternoon for the visitors.
Vieira, whose side are up to 12th with 41 points, said: “I was very happy because I didn’t feel we deserved to be losing at half-time.
“The plan was always for Zaha to come on. It’s important everyone knows we are a team.
“And it’s been a long, frustrating journey for Ebs after seven months out.
“He wants to play but today shows he’s now ready to be at his best again.”
The dejected mood of Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl was in total contrast. He was bitterly upset at his side’s failure to hang on after Oriol Romeu (right) opened the scoring early on.
The Austrian said: “They had better subs who made the difference. It’s disappointing and very hard to take as we know we can play much better. We lacked quality.”
Many had viewed this clash as a personal duel between Saints skipper James WardProwse and Palace’s on-loan Chelsea star Conor Gallagher.
Both are banging on that England door every time they turn out on the domestic front – and the pair could well be competing for a place in the World Cup squad later this year.
And when, after nine minutes,
WardProwse produced his fifth assist this term – with a corner that Romeu headed in off the underside of the bar – the hosts seemed in good shape for a second victory in nine games.
You sensed Vieira must have got stuck into his team at the interval on the evidence of their energetic start to the second half.
And on the hour mark that obvious improvement resulted in a deserved equaliser, Eze beating Fraser Forster at the near post. Saints sub Stuart Armstrong then missed a sitter eight minutes from time, before Zaha took centre stage at the death to send Vieira jumping for joy.