- Jean-Philippe Mateta scored two goals as Crystal Palace defeated Newcastle United 2-0 at home on Wednesday.
- On home ground, the Eagles were superior from beginning to end, as Mateta’s double gave the capital team their third straight victory in the top division of England.
- Oliver Glasner’s team is still in 14th place in the standings, but they are now 14 points above the relegation zone, meaning they will play in England’s top division come next season.
Jean-Philippe Mateta scored two goals as Crystal Palace defeated Newcastle United 2-0 at home on Wednesday.
On home ground, the Eagles were superior from beginning to end, as Mateta’s double gave the capital team their third straight victory in the top division of England.
Oliver Glasner’s team is still in 14th place in the standings, but they are now 14 points above the relegation zone, meaning they will play in England’s top division come next season.
After defeating Sheffield United 4–2 at home, Manchester United moved up to sixth place, forcing Newcastle to drop to seventh place.
Mateta in action against Newcastle. Photo/ Football365
Early in the game, Palace had a great opportunity to take the lead when the ball dropped to Joachim Andersen within the Newcastle box, but Fabian Schar made an incredible stop to keep it out.
In the fifteenth minute, Mateta met a cross from Eberechi Eze, giving the Eagles another chance, but his looping header went over the crossbar.
After that, in the 28th minute, Jordan Ayew found the sidenetting, and from that point on, Selhurst Park was all Palace as Newcastle failed to create any meaningful chances.
Late in the half, Alexander Isak did manage to get one on one with Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson, but the Englishman made a heroic save to deny the center-forward.
The first 45 minutes belonged to Palace, who had nine efforts to Newcastle’s one. The home team also had three shots on goal, but despite their superiority, Palace was unable to muster any points.
In fact, the Eagles have prevented the opposition from scoring a goal in the first half of 21 of their 34 league games this season, and they were able to take the lead early in the second half of this game.
Mateta was the one to create the breakthrough in the 55th minute, combining well with Ayew before emphatically finding the back of the goal. After causing Newcastle all sorts of problems in the first 45 minutes, it was not surprising.
To their dismay, the referee denied Newcastle’s request for a penalty in the 77th minute when Sean Longstaff went down inside the area following a foul from Will Hughes. VAR also concurred.
Then, in the 88th minute, Mateta sent a low cross from Hughes between Martin Dubravka of Newcastle’s goal and the goal, giving Palace a two goal lead.
Ayew against Newcatsle defenders. Photo/ AP News
With eight of those goals coming under Glasner’s coaching, Mateta has already scored 11 Premier League goals this season. The 26-year-old is coming off of a fantastic year.
Palace are 14th with 39 points after 34 games, 14 points ahead of 18th-placed Luton Town, who still have four games remaining.
“I think we are safe now, and it’s always a good feeling to win three games in a row,” Mateta, who has eight goals since Oliver Glasner took over in February, told Sky Sports television.
“There have been many tiny changes, but the quality has always been there. “We’re showing it now,” Hughes remarked.
“The Premier League is really challenging. There are no easy games. You have to work hard and accomplish the basics to reap the benefits, which is what we’ve been doing in the last few games.”
With Sean Longstaff down after a foul by Hughes, Newcastle managed just one attempt on goal and had a penalty claim turned down by the referee and VAR in the 76th minute.
The Magpies are now on 53 points, three points behind Manchester United, who defeated Sheffield United, the team at the bottom, 4-2.
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