Crystal Palace fought back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with new boys Leicester City on Saturday, as Jean-Philippe Mateta’s late penalty kick wrapped up his double.
Jamie Vardy gave Leicester the lead and Stephy Mavididi doubled their lead right at the start of the second half. Mateta made it 2-1 soon after and Palace pushed so hard for an equalizer which finally arrived in stoppage time.
New signing Ismaila Sarr was taken down in the box by Conor Coady and Mateta stepped up to slot home the spot kick and send Selhurst Park wild.
Crystal Palace and Leicester both now have two points for the season, but this draw will feel like a win for the Eagles.
Leicester will be more fun than we thought
Okay, so Steve Cooper’s appointment as Leicester boss this summer when Enzo Maresca left for Chelsea didn’t excite many. But maybe it should have. We often forget that Cooper is a manager who loves taking risks and encourages his players to express themselves. Ndidi and Mavididi did that on Saturday at Crystal Palace and combine that skill and quality on the ball with the direct running of Vardy , Fatawu and others and this Leicester side have a nice balance to them and they can hurt opponents. They had to do a lot of defending and just came up short in holding on for what would’ve been their first win of the season, but the main takeaway is that Leicester will have a real go this season and won’t be content with just sitting back, soaking up pressure and trying to launch counters. They can do that, but they’re also plenty of fun to watch when they did pick the right moments to pour forward.
Crystal Palace vs Leicester player ratings
Via our friends at FotMob.com you can see Palace’s trio of Eze, Mateta and Mitchell had a fine day, while Wharton dragged them back into the game from midfield. The outstanding player on the pitch was Ndidi, who set up both of Leicester’s goals and played some audacious passes just behind the evergreen Jamie Vardy up top.
What’s next?
Palace head to QPR on Tuesday in the League Cup then host Manchester United next Saturday. Leicester are next in action when they host Everton next Saturday.
How to watch Crystal Palace vs Leicester live, stream link and start time
Kick off time: 10am ET Saturday (September 14)
Venue: Selhurst Park
TV Channel: USA Network
Streaming: Watch live on NBC.com
Crystal Palace vs Leicester final score: 2-2
Mateta 47', 92'; Vardy 21', Mavididi 46'
Crystal Palace vs Leicester live updates! - By Joe Prince-Wright
Full time: Crystal Palace 2-2 Leicester
Well, that was fun. Wonderful entertainment and Leicester will be kicking themselves for coughing up two points. In truth, a draw was a fair result and Palace will be relieved that managed to grab a point.
Penalty to Crystal Palace in the 91st minute, and Mateta scores! - Crystal Palace 2-2 Leicester
After Nketiah causes problems for Coady, Ismaila Sarr gets a toe on the ball and Coady lunges in to give away a penalty kick. Penalty to Palace and Mateta slots it home. He has two and so do Palace. 2-2.
Palace pushing hard, as Mateta heads over
Nketiah is fouled but play is waved on, then Kamada’s shot is blocked for a corner. A cross then comes into the box but Mateta’s header is just over. Palace are piling on the pressure.
Nketiah so close to a debut goal
Lovely play from Palace to play in Nketiah but he fires across goal and off target. He has to hit the target there. Palace pushing hard for an equalizer.
Mateta scores but it’s offside... but hang on, VAR says it’s on! - Crystal Palace 1-2 Leicester
A cross into the box is finished by Mateta but he is offside and the flag goes up. VAR checks it and takes a long time before deciding it is indeed a goal. That was so tight and the angle we saw made it look like Mateta was well off. Okay, it stands. What a start to the second half at Selhurst!
What a start to the second half as Mavididi scores! - Crystal Palace 0-2 Leicester
Wow. What a perfect start to the second half for Leicester. A cross into the box is half cleared and Ndidi puts the ball cleverly on a plate for Mavididi to finish.
Half time: Crystal Palace 0-1 Leicester
That is what you call a proper away performance so far from Leicester. Vardy got the goal on the break and they’ve looked sharp and dangerous on the counter. That said, Palace have created plenty but have rushed their finishing.
Mavididi smashes just wide
Vardy latches onto the ball and sets up Mavididi from a tight angle, but his shot at the near post flies wide of the top corner. That was a big chance for Leicester to snatch a second just before the break.
It should be level
Eze wriggles free in the box and puts his shot across goal but it goes wide with Mateta ready to tap home. It looked like the French striker left the ball as he thought it was going in. Palace well on top now, but they’re still behind.
Jamie Vardy puts the Foxes ahead! Crystal Palace 0-1 Leicester
Vardy, 37 years young, latches on to a lovely ball over the top from Ndidi and gets the best of Guehi and nips in front of Henderson to dink home his finish. The away fans go wild and Leicester take the lead.
Munoz denied by a brilliant block from Faes
That is a wonderful piece of defending from Wout Faes. Eze finds Munoz completely unmarked in the box but Faes comes flying in and blocks the shot at the crucial moment.
Nketiah heads wide as Palace improve
Okay, this is much better from Palace. A cross comes in from the left and Nketiah rises high but his header is off target.
What a huge chance for Ayew!
After switching Palace for Leicester this summer, Jordan Ayew is back at Selhurst Park quickly and he should put his new side Leicester ahead. The ball is looped to him at the back post and he has so much time to volley on goal, but he scuffs it into the ground and the ball bounces over. Brilliant chance for Ayew.
Crystal Palace lineup
Henderson; Clyne, Guehi, Lacroix; Munoz, Wharton, Doucoure, Mitchell; Eze; Mateta, Nketiah
Leicester lineup
Hermansen; Justin, Faes, Okoli, Kristiansen; Winks, Skipp, Ndidi; Ayew, Vardy, Mavididi
Crystal Palace focus, team news
Palace have looked a little lackluster in attack so far this season but after losing Michael Olise to Bayern Munich this summer and having Jean-Philippe Mateta arrive back late for preseason due to his involvement in the Olympics, perhaps this was expected. Eze is now their undisputed main man and everything runs through him with deep-lying playmaker Adam Wharton always seeming to find Eze in space with his midfield-splitting passes. New signings Eddie Nketiah, and Maxence Lacroix could feature but Trevoh Chalobah is out. And after keeping hold of Marc Guehi Palace also received a much-needed boost.
OUT: Matheus France (chest/abdominal), Chadi Riad (knee), Rob Holding (undisclosed), Trevoh Chalobah (abdominal)
Leicester focus, team news
Steve Cooper will keep relying on Jamie Vardy as the 37-year-old grabbed the equalizer on the opening weekend to get a point against Tottenham and will run himself into the ground, as he always has. Jordan Ayew and Odsonne Edouard were savvy pick-ups from Crystal Palace this summer but Edouard can’t feature while on loan from Palace, while the likes of Oliver Skipp and Facundo Buonanotte (who scored against Aston Villa last time out) look like very solid additions too. Watch out for winger Abdul Fatawu, who is a real talent and loves to cut in from the right and produce some magic.
OUT: Patson Daka (ankle), Jakub Stolarczyk (ankle), Odsonne Edouard (loan from parent club)
Crystal Palace vs Leicester prediction
This feels like it will be a tight game but the likes of Eze and Mateta are in full-flow now and should prove too much for Leicester to handle. Crystal Palace 2-1 Leicester City.