Palace 2-2 Arsenal

Crystal Palace earned an unexpected point that could easily have been all three against Unai Emery’s winning machine, Arsenal. Two Luka Milivojevic penalties sandwiched goals from Xhaka and Aubameyang in a game full of controversy.

Luka Milivojevic’s Roar

Some might say that the best way to come back from missing a penalty is by tucking one away in the very next game. As Luka run across the front of the Holmesdale, roaring after converting his second spot kick of the game, everyone, including Jose Mourinho, was left admiring the guts of the Serbian skipper.

Scoring two penalties in a game is hard. Some much psychology comes into play. With the miss against Everton, the middle of the goal was taken out of play for Luka. Every time that Andy Johnson had to take a second spot kick in a game, he leathered it down the middle of the goal. With Jordan Pickford’s big right boot still fresh in the memory, it was impossible for Luka to take the same route. What’s left is going the same way as the first or the way that the keeper dived for the first. Luka went for the former and hit the side netting for the second time in the game, giving the German Leno no chance.

Aside from the penalties, this was Luka’s best game of the season. He was still far from his best, but it was certainly a big step up. Is this because he and Kouyate have gained more of an understanding? Did the introduction of Meyer with thirty minutes left help him later in the game? Or did the penalty miss last week act as a slap in the face for the man that is battling an extended dip in form for the first time in his Crystal Palace career? Maybe it is a combination of all three. Whatever it is, long may it continue.

Cheating

I am writing this on Tuesday night and still the internet is full of crazed people calling Wilfried Zaha a cheat, accusing him of diving for the second penalty. This is despite the Arsenal manager, the player that fouled him, almost every single pundit, and even Mark Clattenburg all saying that it is a definite penalty. CLATTENBURG! The man that treats us like we shagged his Mum and Wife.

Meanwhile, Lacazette, who actually cheated, is left getting off scot free.

The French forward set up Arsenal’s second goal by jumping and flicking the ball on with his hand. He then ran off and celebrated his cheating by burying his head deep into the group of Arsenal players to likely gloat about he had just got away with a handball without the cameras being able to pick it up.

That is speculation on my part, but it certainly fits to a person that is happy to cheat to win.

Even worse is that fact that there were several outrageously bad dives in the Premier League in this round of fixtures, yet no-one is talking about them. In our game, Alan Smith said, “he’s not doing himself any favours there” and proceeded to labour the point for the next ten minutes. When Lucas Moura dived in the Tottenham match on Monday night, the commentator had a giggle for literally two seconds and then never mentioned it again. I’ve not even seen a clip of it anywhere since. I have, however, seen Zaha getting fouled a hundred times from the Twitter accounts of fans from all sorts of Club’s telling the world to look at this outrageous dive from the man that does it every week.

Wrong-un’s, the lot of them.

So what has happened since the incident?

Well, Arsenal Fan TV “celebrity” DT screamed to whoever would listen about “Zaha being a fucking cheat.” In fairness to Robbie, he did look at him like he was a complete weirdo.

Wilf has been on the receiving end of death threats to him and his family as well as suffering racial abuse. You know, because he got fouled in a penalty area. Then, because Wilf drew attention to this on Instagram, people started calling him a cry baby. This is the world in a microcosm right now.

Man of the Match: Aaron Wan-Bissaka

Ctrl P, Ctrl V.

What else is left to say about him? By the end of this season, he is going to be considered one, if not the best, right back in the league. His potential is limitless and he just gets better and I can only imagine the sort of offers that are going to be flying in for him when he polishes up his passing.

Up Next: Middlesbrough, League Cup

Win this, draw the winners of Burton or Forest at home and we could be looking at a Cup SF. Are things starting to look up?

Come on you Palace!