The Crystal Palace manager Ian Holloway has said that he is extremely delighted with the response of his players after two matches without a victory. The players finally brought an end to the poor form in the last two matches after the 3-0 win over rivals Brighton and Hove Albion. Prior to the match, the former Blackpool manager expressed his surprise at the way this fixture has become one of the fiercest rivalries, despite the two teams not sharing any common geographical link. Despite this, Crystal Palace supporters will have lot of advantage when it comes to gloating over the Brighton supporters, as they managed to win 3-0 to return to the top of the table.
The two matches without a victory in recent weeks have meant that Cardiff were able to take Crystal Palace at the top of the table. Gus Poyet also said that this match will be a real strength tester for Crystal Palace, but they were extremely comfortable throughout the match. However, Holloway did admit that the red card to the Brighton player in the 8th min of the match made a huge difference to the outcome. Murray scored before the first half to open the lead, and two penalty goals in the second half helped Crystal Palace to return to the top of the table.
“I’m glad I was in our dugout because Gus will be very disappointed with the way things went against his team. I have to say we earned that with the skill of the wide man. Yannick was on that so quickly, I’m sure Gus won’t argue about the sending off. What pleased me was what we did after, which was control the game. I’m delighted with the professionalism of my lads,” said Holloway, who will be facing his former club Blackpool next weekend.