Sarr dazzles, 5/10 big name flops – Crystal Palace player ratings vs Liverpool
Crystal Palace shocked Liverpool with a penalty shootout win over the Premier League champions in the Community Shield on Sunday.
Liverpool twice took the lead in the opening 21 minutes, with Hugo Ekitike scoring just four minutes into his debut and Jeremie Frimpong shortly after on his — either side of a Jean-Philippe Mateta equaliser from the spot.
But Palace just would not lie down and deep into the second half, dragged themselves level again with Adam Wharton feeding Ismaila Sarr, who made no mistake in firing beyond Alisson — though he did need a little help from the post.
A penalty shootout followed. Mohamed Salah blazed the opening effort over the bar, while Henderson then saved Alexis Mac Allister and Harvey Elliot’s penalties to give Palace a huge advantage.
Mateta, Sarr and Devenny all scored for Palace, meaning Eberechi Eze and Borna Sosa’s misses went unpunished.
Here are the full player ratings from another glorious day for Palace at Wembley.
Marc Guehi stands tall under pressure
Dean Henderson – 8
Beaten low by Ekitike and caught out by Frimpong’s mishit cross, with -1.20 goals prevented according to FotMob, but he did improve greatly in the second half, and brilliantly denied Mac Allister and Elliott during the shootout.
Chris Richards – 5
Gave Ekitike too much space on Liverpool’s opener but defended well enough otherwise. Missed a good chance with a free header at the back post in the second half.
Maxence Lacroix – 6
Solid defensively but rather wasteful with the ball, completing just 74% of his passes, including just one out of eight long passes.
Marc Guehi – 7
Under a lot of pressure captaining Palace here, given the heavy links to Liverpool this summer. But the England international performed well and showed no signs of letting speculation get to him. Made six clearances, five recoveries, one interception and one tackle, alongside winning two of his four aerial duels. Palace — and perhaps even Liverpool — will be worried to see him limp off injured at the end.
Daniel Munoz – 8
Arguably Palace’s most lively player, bombing relentlessly up and down the right flank. The Colombian created three chances, completed two of his three attempted dribbles and delivered six crosses into the Liverpool box. Even then, he still had time to make a match-high seven tackles, alongside six recoveries, an interception and a clearance. Won more ground duels (9) than any other player on the pitch.
Daichi Kamada – 6
Looked tidy while he was on the pitch, but was forced off before the half-hour mark with an injury. Palace will hope it’s not serious with the new Premier League season less than a week away.
Adam Wharton – 7
Caused problems with his excellent set-piece deliveries and always looked to be positive with the ball, even if not everything came off for him. The 21-year-old remains an exciting talent.
Tyrick Mitchell – 5
Left in the dust by Frimpong on his goal, though it’s hard to criticise Mitchell too much for that, considering just how fast the Dutchman is. Did well at both ends of the pitch otherwise.
Ismaila Sarr gives Virgil van Dijk nightmares
Ismaila Sarr – 9
Faded in and out of the game, but you just cannot switch off when he’s around. Virgil van Dijk did just that, fouling Sarr in the first half for the penalty and stepping out into no man’s land to give the winger a free run at goal in the second half. Scored his penalty in the shootout.
Eberechi Eze – 5
Lively as always, but missed a big opportunity to level the scores at 2-2 just after the hour mark. Fired at Alisson with an effort worth 0.57 xGOT. Eze never lets his head go down, though, and was always probing for an opening in the Liverpool backline. Missed in the shootout.
Jean-Philippe Mateta – 6
Had a tough job up front on his own and was restricted to just 16 touches of the ball, but he took his penalty well. Perhaps a message sent to Liverpool that he could be an alternative striker target after the news that their push for Alexander Isak could break down. Scored in the shootout.
Will Hughes plays his part from the bench
Will Hughes (on for Kamada, 29′) – 7
Offered plenty of industry and composure in the middle for Palace, including winning the ball back from Cody Gakpo in the build-up to their second goal.
Borna Sosa (on for Mitchell, 79′) – 5
Looked lively on the left flank without doing too much of note. Missed his penalty in the shootout.
Justin Devenny (on for Guehi, 90+3′) – 7
Only had a couple of minutes, coming on for the injured Guehi. Nearly had his big moment in normal, firing a shot just wide of Alisson’s far post, then got it in the shootout with the winning penalty.