Fierce rivals Crystal Palace and Brighton & Hove Albion could not be separated in their Championship playoff semi-final first leg as they played out a goalless draw this evening.
Brighton had the better of the first half but couldn't make the most of their possession as Leonardo Ulloa and Dean Hammond both missed good chances.
The second half was a more even affair but still neither side could find a breakthrough. Palace came closest when Andrea Orlandi was forced to hack the ball off the line, although they were also hit by a serious-looking injury to top-scorer Glenn Murray.
Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look into what was an enjoyable 90 minutes of football at Selhurst Park.
Match statistics:
Crystal Palace:
Shots 8
On target 6
Possession 44%
Corners 5
Fouls 15
Brighton:
Shots 6
On target 3
Possession 56%
Corners 2
Fouls 13
Was the result fair?
If anyone deserved to win it was Brighton, but neither can have many complaints with a draw. Palace certainly didn't do enough to win, although their second-half performance was a vast improvement on what was a lacklustre first 45 minutes. The visitors were by far the best team in the first half and should have taken what would have proved to be a match-winning lead into the break. The second half was much more even, but over the whole 90 minutes Brighton were the better side.
Crystal Palace's performance
For the first 45 minutes, Palace were poor. It was easy to see that they had come into the playoffs in bad form, and they were outplayed by their opponents. They created nothing going forward despite their vast array of attacking talent and it was all too easy for Brighton. They were better in the second half, and spent the opening 15-20 minutes in the ascendancy. They came close on a couple of occasions but didn't test Thomas Kuszczak enough. A draw keeps the tie alive for them, but it will be an uphill battle to qualify for the final now.
Brighton's performance
Their first-half performance was an almost-perfect away display. They stopped Palace going forward and created a couple of good chances themselves. They should have taken a lead into the break and, in truth, the only thing that was missing for them in the first 45 minutes was a goal. They weren't as dominant in the second half as Palace improved, but they held their own when the hosts built up a head of steam and matched them every step of the way. A 0-0 draw is a good result for Gus Poyet, but he knows that it could have been even better.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Liam Bridcutt: It was easy to see why Bridcutt has been awarded the club's player of the season award two years in a row. He isn't someone who grabs the headlines with shedloads of goals or mazy runs, but the unseen work he does in the centre of the park is just as important. He was probably the main reason that Palace were so ineffective in the first half as he acted as a midfield destroyer, ensuring that the likes of Murray and Zaha had no service to thrive upon.
Biggest gaffe
There were no costly gaffes in this match, so this award goes to Will Buckley's shot (that term should be used loosely in this case) in the first half. The Brighton man cut inside well to make room to shoot on his left, but his subsequent effort almost ended up behind him as it flew out for a throw in. It was made even worse by the fact he had a number of teammates to aim for in the box.
Referee performance
Michael Oliver is making a name for himself as a man who officiates with common sense, and the same was true tonight. He solved early niggles and disputes with words rather than cards, which can make a big difference in derby matches such as this one. He perhaps missed a couple of penalty claims in the box from corners, but you rarely see decision like those given anyway. Overall, he had a good game.
What next?
Crystal Palace: Next up is, of course, the second leg! Palace will be up against it when they travel to the Amex on Monday, and they will need an impressive away win to qualify for the playoff final in normal time.
Brighton: For Brighton, meanwhile, they will feel confident of getting a result against Palace when they meet again on Monday. They are in the best position to reach Wembley now.
Barney Corkhill
