Crystal Palace delivered arguably their worst performance of the season as they were beaten at home by Bournemouth.
Goals from Marcos Senesi and Kieffer Moore handed Andoni Iraola’s side all three points, and Roy Hodgson’s side were booed off at half-time and full-time by a disgruntled crowd at Selhurst Park.
To add injury to insult, Tyrick Mitchell came off in the first half with injury, and Hodgson elected to bring on right-back Nathaniel Clyne rather than making a more positive change.
Joel Ward overtook Wilfried Zaha to become Palace’s record appearance-maker in the Premier League, but it was far from a good night for the defender, who was poor yet again and has now been punished.
Joel Ward was woeful against Bournemouth
The 34-year-old has struggled this season, and he continued his poor form as he was run ragged by the visitors.
The defender failed to win a single duel, and was also at fault for Senesi’s opening goal, which came from a corner.
The Bournemouth defender powered a header home as Ward was easily beaten, and Palace had no route back into the game once the goal went in.
Ward also failed to complete a single dribble or either of his two attempted crosses, and was dribbled past once.
Crystal Palace need to replace Joel Ward
It is clear now that Palace urgently need to strengthen at full-back in the January window. Clyne is also no longer at the required level, but Ward is now struggling more than he is succeeding.
Ward has been a fantastic servant for Palace over the years, and his previous contributions should not be forgotten. However, his current plight is damaging his image at the club, as he continues to drop disastrous performances on a weekly basis.
The £35k-a-week defender is physically way off what he used to be, and opposition wingers may often target his side as a weak spot for Palace.
At this point, the fault lies with the club as they did not replace Ward in the summer window, and they need to correct this mistake in January.
