Report & Highlights: Proud Palace fall to penalty shootout defeat at Arsenal

Summary:

• Three changes for Palace as Benítez, Canvot and Lerma come into the side.
• Eagles bidding to reach the League Cup semi-finals for the first time since 2012.
• 3: Arsenal threaten early through Madueke, but Benítez denies him.
• 7: A quick counter from Palace leads to Mitchell blazing over from the angle.
• 22: Benítez spreads himself well to keep out Madueke’s effort.
• 25: The ‘keeper then makes a stunning save to deny Jesus, as Mitchell blocks Madueke’s follow-up.
• 28: Calafiori pokes over the bar for Arsenal from close range.
• 40: Benítez makes a reflex save from close range to keep out Madueke’s blast.
• HT: Arsenal 0-0 Palace
• Clyne and Devenny enter the fray for Palace for the second-half.
• 49: Lerma heads wide from Clyne’s hanging cross.
• 58: Wharton has a low shot on his right whistle wide as Palace start second-half well.
• 69: Gabriel Jesus glances narrowly wide in a topsy turvey spell in the game.
• 75: Hughes replaces Richards, injured while defending Jesus’ header.
• 78: Saliba slides in to deny Mateta a strike after Pino plays him in.
• 79: A goalmouth scramble sees Wharton’s corner somehow not go straight in.
• 79: Arsenal counter and Benítez tips over Jesus’ curling effort in spectacular fashion.
• 80 – Goal: Arsenal appear to edge the tie with an unlucky own-goal from a set-piece.
• 90+5 – GOAL: Guéhi equalises in the 95th minute with a close-range finish from Lerma’s header.
• FT: Arsenal 1-1 Palace
• The tie goes to a lengthy penalty shoot-out.
• Both teams convert their first seven penalties, before Timber scores and Lacroix’s effort is saved to see Arsenal advance.

For Palace, a trip to the Christmas Premier League leaders – and a third match in three different competitions in the last six days – marked not only the chance to bounce back from a difficult defeat at Leeds United over the weekend, but also the chance to reach a first League Cup semi-final since 2012.

The Eagles made three changes ahead of the tie as Walter Benítez and Jaydee Canvot kept their statuses as ever-presents in this season’s Carabao Cup side, with Jefferson Lerma also reintroduced to the starting XI – the Colombian’s 100th appearance for Palace.

Having also played 72 hours prior, Arsenal made eight chances to their starting XI – and it was one of those introduced from the off, summer signing Noni Madueke, who threatened early on after being found in space by Gabriel Jesus. The England winger cut inside Chris Richards, but his low finish was a weak one at Benítez.

Four minutes later, and Palace showed their own cutting edge. The Eagles’ signature quick passing around the halfway line saw Yéremy Pino play the reverse pass to Jean-Philippe Mateta, whose outside-of-the-boot pass freed Tyrick Mitchell.

The left-back charged forwards with Eddie Nketiah in support, but opted against crossing, instead firing over from the angle.

The hosts began to see plenty of the ball and Palace had to choose their moments to get forwards.

It was a scrappy next 15 minutes or so but – entering the latter stages of the first-half – the Gunners’ general dominance of proceedings, along with Benítez’s catalogue of brilliant saves, grew.

The first was from Madueke again, the Argentina international spreading himself superbly to stop the winger’s effort from close range after a clipped ball over the top by Gabriel Martinelli. As the ball rose high and dropped, Canvot did well to clear.

Moments later, an even better save: Martinelli’s flat cross was flicked on towards the far post by Gabriel Jesus, the forward who had scored a hat-trick at the same stage against us last season.

Benítez had other ideas this time around, plunging low to his right to keep out the header in impressive fashion, before Mitchell blocked Madueke’s follow-up.

Arsenal continued to create chances, and Riccardo Calafiori was next to go close with a toe-poked shot inside the box from a half-cleared corner – this time over the bar.

As Palace sought to survive until half-time, Chris Richards, Marc Guéhi and Maxence Lacroix were producing clearing header after clearing header – but there still needed to be one more impressive reflex save from Benítez against Madueke, this time from a close-range blast after the winger had found time to bring the ball down inside the box.

Half-time saw Glasner shuffle his pack, seeking a stronger foothold in the second-half, with Nathaniel Clyne and Justin Devenny entering proceedings to reshape Palace’s right-hand side.

The changes had an immediate effect as Devenny won possession high shortly after the restart, Clyne hung a cross up inside the box and Lerma – jumping between two Arsenal defenders – managed to get onto it, but glanced wide from a difficult position.

The next 10 to 15 minutes were decisively Palace’s, the Eagles winning much more territory and stretching Arsenal’s backline with a succession of crosses and set-pieces into the box – Guéhi coming closest to getting onto the end of one Lerma long throw.

Adam Wharton tried his luck, too, from distance, just before the hour mark, but his low right-footed shot whistled past Kepa’s far post.

The next key moment, sadly, went against Palace, as Richards was taken off on a stretcher while defending a header from Jesus – a painful kick to the bottom of his leg, it looked like – meaning Lerma dropped into the backline, with Will Hughes on from the bench.

The midfielder was involved almost immediately, however, getting a toe in at a midfield duel to play it to Pino in the final third. The Spaniard’s through ball for Mateta was marginally overhit, permitting William Saliba to get a last-ditch toe in.

Remarkably, from the corner, Wharton’s whipped in-swinger appeared to be sailing straight in – only for Kepa, on his knees, to somehow claw it off the goalline.

The ball bounced around the box and Arsenal eventually countered, Mikel Merino feeding Jesus at the other end – his curling effort prompted another wonderful top-corner save from Benítez.

It was going to take something either spectacular or lucky to beat the Argentina international – it proved the latter.

From the subsequent corner, the ball came in, Saliba won the initial header, the ball bounced around the six-yard box and – amidst a sea of bodies – Lacroix’s was the final touch as it looped up and crossed the line.

Lesser teams would have folded at that point – but not this Palace side.

As the match ticked into injury time, Benítez made an excellent low block from Jurrien Timber to deny Arsenal a second – and it proved crucial.

Two minutes later, Devenny was felled on the left-hand side – and Wharton stepped up to deliver. It was a high, hanging cross, and Lerma leapt like a salmon to nod the ball down into the six-yard box – where Guéhi side-footed home the most dramatic of late equalisers.

Arsenal pressed for a winner in the nine additional minutes that remained, but Lerma and Benítez both made further crucial blocks, the latter another wonderful low save from close range to deny Declan Rice.

A draw was the least Palace deserved from the 90 minutes, even if for their second-half display alone.

But when the match went to penalties, for the third time this season for Palace, there awaited further cruelty for the Eagles.

Player after player stepped up and converted, both Arsenal and Palace scoring their first seven kicks of a high-quality shoot-out.

But after Saliba scored Arsenal’s eighth, Lacroix saw his low effort to Kepa’s right kept out, and Palace – by the narrowest of margins possible – eliminated at the Emirates for a second successive season at this stage.

Next up: a return to Premier League action, against Tottenham Hotspur at Selhurst Park, on 28th December.

Arsenal: Kepa (GK), Timber, Saliba, Calafiori, Lewis-Skelly, Norgaard, Merino, Eze (Odegaard, 67), Martinelli (Trossard, 59), Madueke (Saka, 67), Jesus (Rice, 85).

Subs: Raya (GK), Salmon, Zubimendi, Nwaneri, Gyokeres.

Palace: Benítez (GK), Canvot (Clyne, HT), Richards (Hughes, 75), Lacroix, Guéhi, Mitchell (Sosa, 90+11), Wharton, Lerma, Nketiah (Devenny, HT), Mateta, Pino (Uche, 85).

Subs: Henderson (GK), Rodney, Esse, Drakes-Thomas.

As It Happened