February 03, (THEWILL) – Crystal Palace slumped to a humiliating 4-1 defeat away to fierce rivals, Brighton and Hove Albion, on Saturday, ramping up the pressure on under-fire manager, Roy Hodgson.
The 76-year-old could face the axe after the Eagles collapsed in the first half, shipping three goals to leave them chasing shadows. Hodgson was left frustrated by the absence of injured duo, Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise, while the first-half loss of captain, Marc Guehi, to a knee injury summed up Palace’s wretched afternoon.
Brighton showed no sign of fatigue following their 4-0 midweek loss at Luton, storming into a 2-0 lead inside 21 minutes through Lewis Dunk and teenager, Jack Hinshelwood. Facundo Buonanotte added a third for rampant Albion before Joao Pedro rounded off the scoring late on.
A consolation effort from Jean-Philippe Mateta could not paper over the cracks for the beleaguered visitors, who have won just four of their last 17 English Premier League matches under Hodgson’s stewardship.
The ex-England manager continues to divide opinion in SE25 and this latest humbling will turn up the heat ahead of next weekend’s crunch relegation six-pointer at home to Nottingham Forest.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
