Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira has blasted his players following their calamitous second-half collapse against Everton on Thursday night.
The Eagles blew a two-goal lead at Goodison Park as Frank Lampard’s side scored three times in the second half to secure their Premier League status for another season in dramatic fashion. Jean-Philippe Mateta and Jordan Ayew had seemingly put Palace in cruise control at the break only for Michael Keane and Richarlison to help pull the Toffees level with 20 minutes of the game remaining.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin then headed home the winner late on which sparked a small pitch invasion from home fans before hundreds more spilled onto the Goodison Park turf at full-time to celebrate their survival. Palace players quickly made their way down the tunnel without much trouble, though television cameras picked up Vieira being involved in an altercation with an Everton fan that he refused to comment on after the game.
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The Frenchman did speak about his team’s performance though, praising their work rate and ability to control the game in the first 45 minutes but lambasting them for their inability to control matters once the first Everton goal went into Jack Butland’s net.
“We didn't respect the game as well as we did in the first half,” he told reporters in his post-match press conference. “We lost too many simple balls and we were inviting too much pressure. We didn't move the ball quick enough and that allowed them to build that momentum and that confidence.
“It’s about managing the game when we were winning and we didn't do it well enough in the second half and we gave them hope. And when we invited pressure, they managed to win balls and that really woke up the crowd. Then when we conceded the first goal it became really difficult for us.”
Vieira also criticised his players for taking their foot off the pedal during the second half, with the Toffees able to carve open Palace’s midfield after Lampard introduced Dele Alli for Andre Gomes at half-time and brought on Demarai Gray for Anthony Gordon on the hour mark.
“When things were going well we started to showboat a little bit,” added the Frenchman. “We stopped playing simple and this is how we lost the control of the game and that comes with maturity and with discipline and there's a lot to take from the game today.”
