Crystal Palace suffered a heartbreaking end to today’s Premier League clash against Luton Town.
The Eagles conceded a 96th minute equaliser from Cauley Woodrow to throw away two points, after a stunning flick from Jean-Philippe Mateta appeared to have given us a 1-0 win.
Nevertheless, there was one interesting moment during the 1-1 draw which proves Oliver Glasner has already taken set-pieces to another level at Crystal Palace…
Oliver Glasner has taken Crystal Palace set-pieces to another level
Well, Crystal Palace’s struggles from dead ball situations have been well documented this season.
We are the only Premier League side yet to score directly from a corner this season, and have rarely even tested opposition goalkeepers from any set-piece situation, in truth.
However, just moments into the second half today, Crystal Palace very nearly scored from kick-off in what was a truly unique routine.
Jefferson Lerma received the ball from Jean-Philippe Mateta before setting the ball nicely for Adam Wharton, who whipped a pass into the onrushing Eberechi Eze and put the England international through.
Unfortunately, the Hatters snuffed out the danger, but it was fascinating to see a set-piece routine adopted from kick-off, a situation where we have almost always just simply passed the ball backwards.
Hard work starts now
While this set-piece routine was encouraging to see, Crystal Palace once again threw away points late on.
Now, with a three-week break on the horizon, the hard work starts now as Glasner is afforded a proper chance to convey his methods and get to grips with his squad on the training pitch.
Fitness and endurance in the dying stages of matches is clearly an issue, so hopefully, the Austrian has plans to improve this problem in particular.
If these same issues continue to persist after the break, it would be very disappointing to see.
