Crystal Palace and Brighton played out a highly entertaining game at Selhurst Park on Saturday.
SE25 played host to a thrilling Premier League clash which saw Anthony Taylor brandish three red cards, Jean-Philippe Mateta score a stunning goal and over 13 minutes of stoppage time, on a day where Crystal Palace secured a 2-1 win thanks to a strike by Daniel Munoz.
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Jean-Philippe Mateta’s goal against Brighton is Crystal Palace’s fastest Premier League goal of the season. pic.twitter.com/qY9WAEK7cl
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) April 5, 2025
Such is the bitter rivalry between the Eagles and the Seagulls, you very rarely see either side praise each other, but that is exactly what Fabian Hurzeler did after tasting defeat to Oliver Glasner in south London.
Fabian Hurzeler makes embarrassing admission which will surely annoy Brighton supporters
Fans can accept defeats if the opposition simply showed more quality in the final third, but they rarely accept losses if it comes down to a lack of effort and hunger.
Interestingly, Hurzeler admitted to Premier League Productions after the 2-1 defeat that Crystal Palace were hungrier than Brighton to win the game.
As quoted by the BBC, the German said: “It was very wild. We couldn’t control it at the end. We weren’t able to find the right solution. The hunger was bigger from Palace. We made again a silly mistake and got the red card. We did too many easy mistakes. We weren’t aggressive enough, the hunger wasn’t there. Why? We have to analyse.”
Crystal Palace raced out of the blocks to take the lead within just three minutes, clearly determined to make this game their own, and barring a good response from Brighton for the rest of the first half, the Eagles always looked the more likely to win.
Crystal Palace – somehow – are within touching distance of Europe
Despite starting the 2024/25 Premier League game without a win after eight games, Crystal Palace are somehow just four points away from eighth place – with a game in hand.
| Position | Team | Played MP |
Won W |
Drawn D |
Lost L |
For GF |
Against GA |
Diff GD |
Points Pts |
| 5 |  Man CityManchester City |
30 | 15 | 6 | 9 | 57 | 40 | 17 | 51 |
| 6 |  Aston VillaAston Villa |
31 | 14 | 9 | 8 | 46 | 46 | 0 | 51 |
| 7 |  NewcastleNewcastle |
29 | 15 | 5 | 9 | 49 | 39 | 10 | 50 |
| 8 |  BrightonBrighton |
31 | 12 | 11 | 8 | 49 | 47 | 2 | 47 |
| 9 |  B’mouthBournemouth |
31 | 12 | 9 | 10 | 51 | 40 | 11 | 45 |
| 10 |  FulhamFulham |
30 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 44 | 40 | 4 | 45 |
| 11 |  Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace |
30 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 39 | 35 | 4 | 43 |
It has been a stunning turnaround from the south Londoners, who are also into the semi-final of the FA Cup, although it has led to admiring glances from elsewhere.
TBR Football understand Tottenham are watching Glasner amid doubts over Ange Postecoglou, while Liverpool could also take Marc Guehi – who will only have 12 months left on his contract this summer.
If Crystal Palace can either win the FA Cup or qualify for Europe – however – it could convince their most important figures to stay together.
