Roy Hodgson hails Crystal Palace super subs after beating Plymouth

By Sports Desk August 29, 2023

Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson praised his senior substitutes for the part they played in the 4-2 comeback EFL Cup win at Plymouth.

Jordan Ayew, Eberechi Eze and Jeffrey Schlupp were introduced after Plymouth went 2-0 up and each had assists as Palace stormed back after Ben Waine and Luke Cundle had put Argyle ahead.

An Odsonne Edouard strike and two goals in a minute from Jean-Philippe Mateta turned the tie on its head before French striker Mateta completed his hat-trick.

Hodgson said: “I realise we were heavily dependent on the senior players who have been playing in the first team to pull us through.

“So we have to say thank to you them and they enabled us to create those goal chances and score those goals.”

He added: “Plymouth are a good team and deserved their lead but we didn’t get anywhere near close enough to cause them problems in the first half and it didn’t look as though we were going to get that equalising goal.

“We tried to galvanise the team at half-time and then suddenly we found ourselves two goals down, so it was a really good performance to come back from that.

“It was quite obvious what we needed. It was a cracking game of football and we took our chances really well.”

On Mateta, Hodgson continued: “We know he can do that when he gets into those positions. He has that composure and ability to strike the ball very well. I was very pleased with his goals.

“I am sure he will be knocking on my door telling me how good he was. It is nice to have that situation but I thought Edouard was very good as well.”

Argyle boss Steven Schumacher said: “It’s obviously gutting to go out and not get to the next round but I felt we played really well, we pushed a top team in Crystal Palace all the way.

“We showed in large parts of the game what we are capable of and just for a five-minute spell in the second half we got undone with three really brilliant moments of play from top quality players.

“It’s something for us to learn from but overall I am pleased with the performance but gutted to be out. They’ve got top quality players to find space and get their players the ball. And then we just switched off in and around our box.

“When Roy bought on Eze, Ayew and Schlupp I just felt that changed the momentum of the game and just for a second we switched off, lost concentration and we got punished.

“We needed fresh legs tonight and as I always say, we haven’t really got a starting XI, we’ve got a squad who I think are capable of playing. The lads who played tonight were brilliant and I probably have got a few selection headaches ahead of Saturday.”

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