London, Feb 9 (.) Crystal Palace ended a 13-match winless run across all competitions with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over rivals Brighton & Hove Albion, easing their relegation concerns in the Premier League on Sunday.
Ismaila Sarr scored the decisive goal in the 61st minute, finishing calmly after being set up by debutant Evann Guessand, the Aston Villa loanee, making his first appearance for Oliver Glasner’s side.
Brighton nearly hit back within minutes, but Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson produced a crucial save to deny Charalampos Kostoulas in a one-on-one situation.
The visitors had the better of a low-key first half, with Lewis Dunk heading narrowly wide from a free-kick and Maxence Lacroix blocking a fierce drive from Maxim De Cuyper. Palace created a little before the break, with Sarr blazing over after being released by Daniel Munoz.
Palace capitalised on their first shot on target after the restart and later threatened to double their lead, but Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen denied debutant Jorgen Strand Larsen twice late on.
The win lifts Palace to 13th in the table, one point above Brighton, whose winless league run stretched to five matches. Brighton struggled to break down Palace’s compact defence despite introducing attacking options from the bench.
Seventeen-year-old Harry Howell became Brighton’s youngest-ever Premier League starter and showed promise in attack, but the Seagulls remain only eight points above the relegation zone.
. VAN JRC