Crystal Palace 2-1 Newcastle United, comeback locked in and Oliver Glasner’s 3-4-3 now has his side above Eddie Howe’s team in the table. Two days on, Selhurst Park is still replaying Jean-Philippe Mateta’s stoppage-time penalty and the surge it sparked in a season that had threatened to drift.
Howe trusted a 4-3-3 built around possession. Newcastle controlled the ball at 59 percent, Sandro Tonali and Lewis Miley dictating early phases, and they got their reward when William Osula scored in the 43rd minute after a simple combination with Miley. Palace’s back line of Jaydee Canvot, Maxence Lacroix and Chris Richards had been steady to that point, yet the visitors’ calmer midfield rhythm kept pinning the hosts back.
Glasner’s response was immediate. At the 64th minute he sent on Adam Wharton and Ismaïla Sarr, then, one minute later, Mateta replaced Jørgen Strand Larsen. The change flipped the dynamic. Mateta occupied both centre-backs, Sarr stretched the left, and Palace finally began to turn Jefferson Lerma’s pressing into sustained pressure.
The equaliser came in the 80th minute. Tyrick Mitchell, tireless as a wing-back all afternoon, provided the assist and Mateta converted to drag Palace level. Howe tried to react with Harvey Barnes at the 71st minute, then a double switch on 84, but Newcastle never recovered their earlier composure. They mustered only seven total shots and three on target.
Palace kept forcing the issue. Lerma’s late drive into the box drew a foul from Sven Botman—the only penalty he conceded on the day according to the match data—and Mateta stayed composed from the spot in the 90+4 minute. Aaron Ramsdale had already taken a yellow card in the 90+3 minute amid the protests, but it did nothing to disrupt the execution. Malick Thiaw had seen yellow in the 68th minute, Joelinton followed in the 74th minute, and Newcastle’s discipline cracked with the game on the line.
Palace’s numbers back the scalp. They produced 2.56 expected goals off 11 shots despite only 41 percent possession, their wing-backs providing width while Yéremy Pino’s 76 minutes of craft kept Newcastle honest. Dean Henderson did not need heroics, just two saves, because the back three won the duels that mattered once the press clicked.
The table shifts, and that matters. Palace climb to 42 points from 31 matches, nudging ahead of Newcastle on goal difference. Howe’s side remain on 42 from 32 outings with form slipping to LLWWL. He has to relaunch quickly with tougher assignments looming, especially with midfield minutes to manage after Tonali’s 89-minute shift and Joelinton’s caution. Glasner meanwhile can target the top half. Momentum is real, and the confidence from this finish should bleed into a run that already includes Everton and Brighton slips in recent weeks. For more on the top-half shuffle, see how Aston Villa fared at the City Ground in Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa.
Stats
- Shots on target: Palace 5, Newcastle 3
- Expected goals: Palace 2.56, Newcastle 1.13
- Possession: Palace 41 percent, Newcastle 59 percent
- Fouls: Palace 17, Newcastle 12
- Key bookings: Malick Thiaw 68', Joelinton 74', Aaron Ramsdale 90+3'
