Be wary of the 15th of March. Solly March, to be exact. On the eve of Gareth Southgate naming his England squad for the Euro 2024 qualifiers against Italy and Ukraine, the 28-year-old’s seventh goal of the season finally ended Brighton’s four-year wait for a victory against their bitter rivals leaves Crystal Palace still winless in 2023 and hovering precariously close to the relegation zone.
As soon as Patrick Vieira was forced to award Joe Whitworth his debut in goal, the Palace manager may have had a hunch that the evening would not go well. There was no concealing the widening gap between the visitors and Roberto De Zerbi’s team. Who are now tied with Liverpool in sixth place on points and have a game in hand. Palace has other concerns to address. As they have spent 73 days in 12th place but are now only three points ahead of the bottom three.
Despite being 46 miles apart, these opponents’ moods were completely different in the days running up to this match.
While Brighton fans have been imagining next season’s potential European qualification under their swashbuckling Italian manager, Palace fans have been nervously peering over their shoulders for weeks as the threat of relegation has grown.
Having become the first Premier League team in 20 years to fail to record a shot on target in three consecutive matches, Vieira has done his best to assuage growing nerves and insisted this week that they have been working hard to become “more ruthless” in front of goal. In the first minute of play, Wilfried Zaha prompted Jason Steele to act at his near post. Thereby putting an end to the aforementioned undesirable trend.
Palace’s chances of extending their seven-match unbeaten streak against Brighton had certainly not been helped by the absence of goalkeeper Vicente Guaita due to injury, with Whitworth – who only turned 19 at the end of February – becoming the youngest goalkeeper to appear in a Premier League game since Sunderland’s Ben Alnwick in December 2005. “He was a ball boy at the stadium and is a genuine fan of Crystal Palace. It is an important day for him,” Vieira said beforehand.
After Odsonne Édouard missed a golden opportunity with a header off Michael Olise’s cross. Whitworth’s first action was to sprint 40 yards out of his goal to clear a promising Brighton attack.
However, he was unable to stop March’s accurate shot from the perimeter of the penalty area in the 15th minute. After Kaoru Mitoya had played him in after leaving Nathaniel Clyne trailing.
March spent two years in Palace’s development academy between the ages of 11 and 13, but he is now approaching 250 appearances for Brighton and has been recommended by De Zerbi for an England call-up on Thursday when Southgate announces his squad. On this basis, he could perform much worse.
Only Édouard will know how he squandered a golden opportunity to equalize when he was played through 10 minutes before halftime, leaving Vieira once again to lament their lack of finishing ability in front of goal. Cheick Doucouré was fortunate not to receive a second yellow card for bringing down Moisés Caicedo. And then March as Brighton advanced in quest of a second goal.
In the second half, Vieira wisely substituted the Mali playmaker. Mitoma was millimeters away from connecting with March’s cross before Pervis Estupián was denied by Whitworth’s near post save.
When the stadium lights went out, referee Peter Bankes sent Palace’s defense to the bench. Although it did not last long.
Brighton’s best chance was Whitworth’s one-handed save on Alexis Mac Allister’s corner kick. But having waited since March 2019 to get one over on Palace, the final whistle after March departed the field to a standing ovation, and substitute Naouirou Ahamada missed a golden opportunity to equalize in nine minutes of added time was celebrated late into the Sussex night.
