Roy Hodgson guides Crystal Palace to their first win of 2023 on their return to Selhurst Park as Jean-Philippe Mateta scores the 94th-minute winner against Leicester
Roy Hodgson inspired Crystal Palace to their first win of 2023 after returning to Selhurst Park to replace Patrick Vieira.
The 75-year-old took over from the Frenchman during the international break on a contract until the end of the season, tasked with keeping the Eagles in the Premier League.
Jean-Philippe Mateta scored a 94th-minute winner for Palace against Leicester (/caption)
Hodgson inspired the Eagles to a first victory in 2023 when he returned to Selhurst Park (/caption)
And that’s exactly what he did as the south London side came from behind to beat Leicester 2-1 in spectacular fashion with Jean-Philippe Mateta scoring a 94th-minute winner.
Palace now sit in 12th place – five points above the bottom three ahead of next week’s trip to Elland Road to face Leeds.
They became the last club in England’s four professional leagues to record a league win this calendar year.
Brendan Rodgers’ side took the lead in the 56th minute thanks to a thunderbolt from Ricardo Pereira.
The right-back fired the ball into the top left corner just inside the box to spark wild scenes from the visitors.
But Palace equalized just three minutes later when Eberechi Eze’s free-kick was fired from under the bar and from the back of Leicester goalkeeper Daniel Iversen.
Palace are now five points clear of the bottom three (/caption)
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It looked like both teams would earn a share of the spoils, only for Mateta to fire home with the final kick of the game after being picked off by Jordan Ayew.
The result leaves Leicester in 18th place, with growing pressure on Rodgers after a disastrous season.
Although it’s not all good news for Palace, after Wilfried Zaha suffered a first-half injury in what could be his last game for the club with his contract expiring this summer.
Speaking after the game, a delighted Hodgson said: “It was a fantastic way to win a game and I’m not just talking about it being a last minute goal.
Mateta was so happy after scoring his first league goal since August (/caption)
“The way the team played throughout the 94 minutes was worthy of a lot of credit. The scoreline certainly does not flatter us.
Expressing his concern over Zaha’s injury, he said: “I’m definitely worried but I have no idea. Muscle strains can be long labors.
“If we’re very lucky, it might not be that long. I just have to wait and trust the physios.
“If I know one thing it’s that he’s a quick healer, he doesn’t like being off the pitch.
“If anyone is going to get over it quickly it would be him, but first we have to see how bad it is.”
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