Chris Richards says Crystal Palace could compete with anyone when they are at the "top of their game" ahead of their trip to Aston Villa in the Premier League.

Palace have won just once in the league this season, a 1-0 home victory against Tottenham, and are yet to win on the road in the English top-flight, drawing two and losing three. However, they did beat the Villans 2-1 at Villa Park in the EFL Cup round of 16 at the end of October.

Richards acknowledged Palace's poor start to the campaign but remains confident in their ability to go toe-to-toe against anyone they face.

"[Oliver Glasner] told us from the jump that there was no reason we shouldn't be in a higher spot in the table, no reason why we should lose to any team," Richards told the club's in-house media.

"We could play a team winning the league – even when we played Manchester City, we were winning.

"City are City, and we lost the game, but it shows that while we were at the top of our game, we could play with any team in the league."

Meanwhile, after an impressive start to the season, Villa faltered slightly before the international break, going on a five-match winless run in all competitions, and losing the last three.

Morgan Rogers, who recently signed a new long-term extension with the club, has been a bright spark for Villa this term, netting three goals and registering two assists in the league, and he believes his form is helped by the faith shown in him by Unai Emery.

"I think any player would say that trust from a manager is the most important thing, and he gave me that from day one," he said.

"He threw me in the deep end when people were injured last season and gave me a chance to shine and develop and to become the person I am now.

"He's the perfect person for me. He demands and pushes me every day, and so do the players. I've got players around me that push me every day to improve and get better."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Aston Villa – Emiliano Martinez

Emiliano Martinez has the fourth-lowest save percentage in the Premier League this season (60.5%, minimum two games).

Only Alphonse Areola (-3.6) and Jose Sa (-2.9) have conceded more goals than expected according to Opta's expected goals on target (xGoT) model than the current Yashin Trophy holder (-2.2).

Crystal Palace – Jean-Philippe Mateta

Jean-Philippe Mateta has scored more Premier League goals (four) and recorded his joint-most assists (two) in the competition against Aston Villa than any other opponent.

The Frenchman was directly involved in four of the Eagles' five goals in their 5-0 win over the Villans on the final day of last season (three goals, one assist).  

MATCH PREDICTION: ASTON VILLA WIN

Villa have lost just one of their 12 Premier League home games against Palace (W7 D4), never conceding more than once in any of these 12 meetings (six goals conceded in total).

The away side has won just three of the 24 Premier League meetings between Villa and Palace (D6 L15), with the Eagles' only victory at Villa Park coming in December 2013 (1-0).

However, Villa have lost both of their last two Premier League games and could lose three in a row in the competition for just the second time under manager Unai Emery, also doing so in February 2023.  

Meanwhile, Palace have registered just seven points from their opening 11 league games this season (W1 D4 L6), only picking up fewer points at this stage of a Premier League campaign in 2013-14 (four) and 2017-18 (four).

A repeat of their last meeting would be a welcome sight for Oliver Glasner though. Following their 5-0 win against Villa on the final day of last season's Premier League, Palace are looking to win consecutive league meetings with the Villans for the first time since a run of three between 2005 and 2014.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Aston Villa – 57.2%

Draw – 22.3%

Crystal Palace – 20.5%

Morgan Rogers has signed a new contract to keep him at Aston Villa until the end of the 2029-30 season.

Rogers, newly minted as a full England international after making his debut against Greece last week, joined Villa in February from Middlesbrough.

He swiftly established himself as a regular in Unai Emery's set-up, and has played 22 times in the Premier League, making 19 starts.

The 22-year-old has netted six goals and provided three assists in the top flight.

Rogers has also started each of Villa's four Champions League matches this season.

His tally of nine chances created in the Champions League is the most of any player in Villa's squad, five more than next-best Ollie Watkins.

Arne Slot envisages "many challenges to come" in Liverpool's Premier League title race, despite his side moving five points clear at the top of the table with victory on Saturday.

The Reds capitalised on Manchester City's slip at Brighton by taking all three points in a 2-0 win over Aston Villa to establish breathing space at the summit.

Darwin Nunez gave the hosts the lead at Anfield as he capitalised after a quick counter, before Mohamed Salah did the same six minutes from time to secure all three points.

While Slot was pleased by the outcome, he is aware the cushion at the top does not guarantee a smooth run in their title challenge.

"It wasn't easy, like most of our games have been now," he told TNT Sport. "Aston Villa were maybe not as aggressive as we thought they would be.

"We were patient. One thing they are very good at is set-pieces. In general, we had control over the game and scored from two counter-attacks, which is maybe not what we would expect.

"If I look at the games that are ahead, they are tough. It will be a tough season in general. Margins are small, we have a margin, but it is small. [There are] many challenges to come for us."

Slot has got off to a fine start since succeeding Jurgen Klopp as manager at the start of the season, as he became just the fourth manager to win as many as nine of his first 11 Premier League games in charge, after John Gregory, Guus Hiddink, and Carlo Ancelotti.

Liverpool now have 28 points in the league. They have only previously equalled this total once after 11 games, in their title-winning season of 2019-20 (31). 

Equally, no manager has ever won more points from their first 11 games in the competition than Slot. The Dutchman is not concerned by totals or margins, however, with his focus remaining on the philosophy he wants to instil at Anfield.

"As a manager, if you come into a new club, you don't think about how many points after how many games," he told BBC Match of the Day. "You think about changing the style or keeping it as it was.

"To change the style, you have to do a lot of things on the training ground and in meetings. The only thing I have thought about is how to implement the playing style, and how to make sure the players keep working as hard as they can."

Unai Emery urged his side to “keep improving” after Saturday's 2-0 defeat at the hands of Premier League leaders Liverpool at Anfield.

Aston Villa have now lost four successive games in all competitions for the first time since April 2022.

They have also lost consecutive league matches for the first time since May 2023, after breakaway goals from Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah sent Arne Slot's team five points clear at the top of the standings.

Emery was pragmatic in defeat but insisted his side need to up their game if they are to match the levels they set last season.

"We have to keep improving, recover some players who have just come back after long injuries. Some players are not in the same performance level as last year but today they were a bit better," he told TNT Sports.

"This year a lot of players have come back from long injuries. We have to try to keep the same positive attitude and mentality and try to accept the results that we have had this week.

"The league is tight, there are a lot of teams performing very well and we have to accept that we need to improve. We are under our level from last year a little bit but I am still confident."

Villa have recently seen the return of Tyrone Mings from a long-term injury, but there was further concern for Emery when Jacob Ramsey sustained an apparent hamstring issue late in the first half.

The Villans did have their chances at Anfield, with Amadou Onana and Diego Carlos forcing good saves out of Caoimhin Kelleher.

Indeed, Villa posted 1.5 expected goals (xG), compared to Liverpool's 2.02.

"Liverpool dominated at times but they did not have a lot of clear chances to score," reflected Emery.

"We did our work and we had the chances to score in the first half, in the second half, and we played more or less in the way I wanted."

Villa took 12 shots during the match, only two less than Liverpool (14), with an equal number coming from inside the box (nine each).

They also had shouts for a penalty prior to Liverpool's second goal when Pau Torres went down after he had his shirt pulled in the box, but their appeals were waved away.

"We have to try to be consistent in how we are building and responding. We have to compete and build a team, but we played the match we planned," Emery said, as reported by the Premier League's official website.

"We had chances to score, we had one penalty, maybe a potential penalty, for me, it's clear. With VAR, it was not but I have to accept the decision."

Emery also feels Villa lost to a team that are clear title contenders.

"They started better than us, they are contenders to win the title, but I think you have to try to get our way, and we are in this process," he said. "I am positive."

Mohamed Salah played a starring role as Liverpool beat Aston Villa 2-0 at Anfield to move five points clear at the top of the Premier League.

Arne Slot’s in-form side took full advantage of Manchester City’s defeat at Brighton earlier on Saturday, with Salah scoring one and setting up another to condemn Villa to their second straight league defeat.

Benefitting from Salah's fantastic work, Darwin Nunez broke the deadlock in the 20th minute, firing home from a tight angle.

Unai Emery's team did have chances of their own, with Caoimhin Kelleher making brilliant saves to deny Amadou Onana and Diego Carlos, while Villa also had a penalty appeal turned down after a VAR check.

But Salah ensured the home faithful could relax when he prodded over Emiliano Martinez on the counter in the 84th minute.

While Liverpool, with nine wins from 11, sit pretty at the top, Villa are in eighth, level on points with Fulham, Arsenal and Chelsea.

Data Debrief: Nunez and Salah are Slot's deadly duo

Since the start of 2022-23, only Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne (15) have combined for more Premier League goals than Nunez and Salah (12), who were the difference-makers this time around.

Salah became the first player to reach double figures for both goals (10) and assists (10) for a big five European League side in all competitions this season. He has now achieved this in each of his last four seasons at Liverpool.

Nunez, meanwhile, has been involved in 12 goals in his last 16 Premier League starts for Liverpool (eight goals, four assists), including three goals in his last five top-flight starts at Anfield.

Arne Slot believes Curtis Jones' upturn in form for Liverpool has coincided with the 23-year-old recently becoming a father for the first time. 

Jones has played a starring role for the Reds in recent weeks, which has earned him a call-up by Lee Carsley for England’s upcoming Nations League fixtures this month. 

The midfielder shone during Liverpool's 4-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League, notching a sublime assist for Luis Diaz's 61st minute opener. 

Jones also created the joint-most chances (three) along with Ryan Gravenberch at Anfield, and is now pushing Dominik Szoboszlai for a starting spot in Liverpool's midfield. 

"With Curtis he became a fighter and I had nothing to do with that. Since the moment he became a father [last month], he started putting great performances in," Slot said. 

"He already did in the first few weeks of pre-season and I thought he was a quality player.

"His performances dropped a bit but from the moment he became a father he has been outstanding again.

"It might have a bit to do with that, but I think it is more to do with how the team plays. As a result of that, individual performances are good as well."

Jones has started four of the Reds' last six games in all competitions, notching four goal contributions (one goal, three assists) in those games. 

But the midfielder has had to bide his time under Slot, with the Liverpool boss challenging Jones to add consistency to his game in the coming weeks. 

"He has a lot of qualities on the ball, when he has it he's never afraid to do something special. Sometimes he is a bit too over-confident but confidence is important," Slot added.

"He also has an incredibly high work-rate and we can trust him defensively. You saw how he performed against Cole Palmer.

"If he wants to continue progressing he has to show every three days these performances."

Liverpool's fine start to the season continued with their midweek thrashing of Leverkusen, and they are now top of the Premier League and Champions League tables. 

The Reds' victory over Brighton in the league saw Slot become just the fifth manager to win as many as eight of his first 10 Premier League games in charge, after John Gregory (1998), Guus Hiddink (2009), Carlo Ancelotti (2009) and Ange Postecoglou (2023).

Of the previous four, only Postecoglou failed to win his 11th match in the competition, though Slot faces a stern test this weekend when Aston Villa visit Merseyside. 

The Dutchman, however, insisted that his side's flying start to the season had not come as a surprise. 

"I don't think surprise is the right word to use because I knew the quality of our team. But quality is one thing and consistency is another," Slot concluded.

"I am not surprised because I saw the energy my players put in on a daily basis.

"Sometimes a bit of luck comes with us as well. Most of our results were deserved, but some have been a close call.

"In general, I'm not surprised because of the quality that was in the team and when I started working with them, I saw how much effort they put in to get these results."

Arne Slot believes hard work and intensity have been key to Liverpool's form ahead of their Premier League meeting with Aston Villa on Saturday.

Slot has won 14 of his 16 matches in all competitions since taking charge at Anfield and, despite his magnificent start, he pointed out that it has not been easy.

"You only look at results. Brighton was a difficult one on Saturday where we were 1-0 behind and had to fight really hard and that is what you saw," he told the Independent.

"We have to work really hard with incredibly high intensity to win our games and that has a lot to do with teams who think Anfield is the best place to play, so every team we play against is at the top of their game. If you want to win you always have to be consistent in your intensity."

Having taken over from Jurgen Klopp, it was understandable that expectations had lowered when Slot took over, but after a stellar start to the season, Slot said he was unconcerned by the pressure.

"I think if you work at any club around the world there is always pressure. For some managers it is not to go down, for some they have to win a lot,” he added.

"In our position, there is always pressure and that is the pressure we give ourselves."

Villa, meanwhile, go into this game having lost back-to-back games against Tottenham in the Premier League and Club Brugge in the Champions League.

A bizarre penalty conceded by Tyrone Mings provided the winner for the Belgian side on Wednesday, but Unai Emery was still pleased with the intensity his side showed.

"The first half we played like we were planning... It was a mistake," Emery said after that game.

"It is difficult and here it is not strange. You watched the match and [Villa] playing, they finished exhausted. It was not intensity, it was that the match changed completely after our mistake."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Liverpool – Mohamed Salah

No player has been involved in more Premier League goals than Mohamed Salah (12) so far this season, with seven goals and five assists. He has also had the most touches in the opposition box this term (96), while of players to have had 20+ shots, no-one has hit a higher percentage of them on target (67% - 20/30).

The Egyptian has scored in four of his last five appearances at Anfield in all competitions, while he was also credited with two assists in the 4-0 victory over Leverkusen last time out.

Aston Villa – Ollie Watkins

Only Erling Haaland (16) has had more big chances than Ollie Watkins (14) in the Premier League this season.

While Watkins has only scored five league goals, with four of those coming from the big chances, he is still Villa's top goalscorer.

MATCH PREDICTION: LIVERPOOL WIN

Liverpool have won five of their last six home games against Villa (D1), while the visitors have lost 16 of their last 18 Premier League away games against sides starting top of the table (D2).

A large part of Liverpool's early-season success has come from their defence, with only Manchester City (32) facing fewer shots on target than them (34) in the league. Liverpool, meanwhile, have conceded the fewest goals in the Premier League (six).

Slot is also only the fifth manager to win eight of his first 10 Premier League matches in charge, with the club also unbeaten in their last seven (W5 D2) against Villa.

Slot's side have won four and lost one of their five home games in the league this season, accruing the joint third-most points (12).

However, Liverpool have conceded the first goal in their last two Premier League games but avoided defeat in both (2-2 v Arsenal, 2-1 v Brighton). Indeed, their win against Brighton was the 100th time they have come from behind to win a Premier League match, the third team to reach this milestone in the competition.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Liverpool – 61.8%

Draw – 19.7%

Aston Villa – 18.4%

Aston Villa bemoaned the controversial penalty decision that condemned them to a first Champions League defeat at Club Brugge on Wednesday.

On their return to Europe's elite club competition, Villa won their first three matches without conceding, but that run was ended in a 1-0 reverse in Belgium.

The decisive goal was highly contentious, however. Tyrone Mings was penalised for picking up a pass from Emiliano Martinez, apparently believing the Villa goalkeeper had not yet taken a goal-kick.

That error was punished as Hans Vanaken converted the consequent penalty, and Villa could not recover from a moment that boss Unai Emery felt altered the shape of the game.

"In the second half, the mistake changed everything," Emery said. "A team like [Brugge], they are playing at home, defensively strong, they then focus 100% to stop us. They were better than us."

Mings' defensive colleague Ezri Konsa described his frustration at the incident, suggesting Mings would have been sent off had there been a genuine infringement.

"It killed the game," Konsa said. "If it is a handball, deliberate, then he should get a second yellow.

"He's on a yellow already, so why not send him off for that then? It killed the game.

"But look, it happened, there's nothing we can do, we've just got to move on from it."

Villa have now lost three consecutive games in all competitions, matching their worst such run under Emery. They face Premier League and Champions League leaders Liverpool next at Anfield.

Tyrone Mings' calamitous mistake proved costly as Aston Villa lost 1-0 to Club Brugge in the Champions League.

Villa had won their opening three games in the competition, but their unbeaten run came to a shuddering halt in Belgium on Wednesday.

Mings was at fault as he conceded a bizarre penalty early in the second half.

On his first Champions League appearance, Mings inexplicably picked the ball when it was passed his way by Emiliano Martinez, believing it was not in play.

The referee pointed to the penalty spot, with the spot-kick confirmed by VAR, and Hans Vanaken converted from 12 yards.

Unai Emery's side failed to create much of note from then on, and finished with just 0.4 expected goals (xG) from what was a disappointing attacking display.

Brugge are now on six points, three behind Villa.

Data Debrief: Brugge finally claim an English scalp

This was Brugge's first win over an English team in Europe since they beat Chelsea in the Cup Winners' Cup in 1995, ending a run of 14 matches without a victory against English teams.

Villa, meanwhile, failed to become just the fourth team to win their first four Champions League matches, after Milan (1993), Paris Saint-Germain (1994) and Juventus (1995).

Ange Postecoglou saluted an "outstanding effort" by Tottenham after they came from behind to beat Aston Villa 4-1.

Spurs scored four second-half goals as they got back to winning ways in the Premier League, following last weekend's 1-0 defeat at lowly Crystal Palace.

Postecoglou's side notched up an impressive 2-1 victory over Manchester City in the EFL Cup on Wednesday, but fell behind against Villa to Morgan Rogers' first-half effort.

Nevertheless, the hosts responded well after the break. Dominic Solanke scored twice, while Brennan Johnson and James Maddison were also on target in what was eventually a commanding victory.

And Postecoglou by the positive manner in which his players have responded to their setback at Selhurst Park.

"Seven days is a long time in football," he said. "Seven days ago, I was a grumpy old so and so. We have to stay true to the course we're on. We made sure not to feel sorry for ourselves and get back to the team we want to be.

"The first half was a bit of an arm wrestle. [Villa] have a consistent level of performance. We have other gears in us, which we showed in the second half. After the performance in midweek, I thought it was an outstanding effort.

"I felt the momentum was going our way, we knew we would finish strong and if we upped it a couple of gears like we can, we knew we would be hard to stop."

The head coach also paid tribute to Solanke, who became the first Spurs player to score at least four goals in his first eight Premier League appearances for the club since Rafael van der Vaart in 2010-11.

"The amount of work the guy did for us over the week - goals are great, but his capacity to do everything he can for the team in every area - I can't speak highly enough of him," Postecoglou added.

"We stuck with it," Solanke told Sky Sports. "A few times this season, we've gone a goal down. Against Palace, we didn't react in the right way, but today we did.

"We always believe we can score many goals. It all came together today in the second half. We had to adapt to the way they were playing. At half-time, we had time to regroup and discuss what we had to do.

"We've had some great games, but haven't managed to do it the whole season, but we think we're capable of it."

Dominic Solanke scored twice as Tottenham got back to winning ways in the Premier League, coming from behind to beat Aston Villa 4-1.

Spurs bounced back from last weekend's 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace, with four second-half goals turning the contest completely on its head at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Villa had broken the deadlock just after the half-hour mark when Morgan Rogers prodded home after Guglielmo Vicario parried John McGinn's deflected corner straight into his path.

However, Brennan Johnson levelled within four minutes of the restart, the Wales international turning in Heung-min Son's inviting cross at the far post.

The hosts then completed the turnaround in the final quarter of an hour, with Solanke rounding off two neat moves in the space of four minutes.

Substitute James Maddison put some gloss on the scoreline when he curled home a delightful stoppage-time free-kick, as Villa's seven-match unbeaten streak came to an abrupt end.

Data Debrief: Spurs come from behind once more

Tottenham fell behind as they conceded the opening goal of a Premier League home game for the 12th time in 2024, more than any other side.

However, they hit back as Solanke's brace made him the first Spurs player to score at least four goals across his first eight Premier League appearances for the club since Rafael van der Vaart in 2010-11.

The former Bournemouth forward has now scored more Premier League goals against Unai Emery's Villa than any other player, doing so four times in as many appearances against them.

Spurs have now won eight home Premier League games in 2024 after conceding the opening goal, matching Newcastle United in 2002 for the joint-most by a single team in a calendar year.

Micky van de Ven suffered a hamstring injury and will be out of action for Tottenham until after the international break, head coach Ange Postecoglou has revealed.

Van de Ven left the pitch in tears while clutching the back of his right leg 14 minutes into Tottenham’s EFL Cup victory over Manchester City on Wednesday.

While Postecoglou confirmed the fears of Spurs fans, he was optimistic about the prognosis with the defender not expected to be out for a long stretch.

"Micky has strained a hamstring. It's not too serious, but it will probably be after the international break for him [to return]," the Spurs boss told reporters ahead of his side's clash with Aston Villa on Sunday.

"He was disappointed. Obviously, he was really looking forward to the game, so he was a bit emotional, but it is definitely not a bad one like last time that kept him out for quite a while.

"He will work hard, and the good thing is we've got the international break, which is an extra two weeks. Hopefully, it means he won't miss too much football."

Van de Ven has featured in eight of Tottenham's nine Premier League games this season and has been a reassuring presence in defence.

Indeed, he has made the second most clearances (23) and blocks (four) in the squad, only second to Cristian Romero and Pedro Porro respectively.

There was, however, positive news about skipper Heung-min Son, who was absent during Spurs' defeat at Crystal Palace last weekend.

"Sonny trained [on Friday], so if he gets through training [on Saturday], he should be OK," Postecoglou added.

Emiliano Martinez was humble as he accepted the Yashin Trophy for the second straight year at the Ballon d'Or awards on Monday.

Martinez, who played a key role in Aston Villa's Champions League qualification last term before helping Argentina retain the Copa America title.

The former Arsenal goalkeeper won the Yashin Award in 2023, having been integral to Argentina's 2022 World Cup success, and he kept hold of the prize dished out to the best goalkeeper at the ceremony in Paris.

"I don’t see myself as the best – there are so many good goalies I see week in, week out," Martinez said upon accepting the award.

"I only care about group titles with the national team, with Aston Villa. I focus on myself and my goalie coaches know the work I put in every day.

"For me, it's about improving myself."

Martinez and Villa have made an impressive start to the campaign. They are top of the Champions League with three wins from as many matches, and occupy fourth spot in the Premier League ahead of Sunday's trip to Tottenham.

"It's huge for me," Martinez continued.

"I always dreamed of playing one game for the national team. Coming from such a young lad to England and trying to work my way up to succeed at Aston Villa and with the national team, winning one [cap] was an honour.

"Back-to-back [Yashin Trophies] is something I never expected. I'm just proud to be here today. All thanks go to my family and friends.

"We’re doing something amazing in the club, we're moving forward. We've won back-to-back trophies with the national team and that’s all I care about."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Tottenham - Son Heung-min

Son, who missed Spurs' defeat to Crystal Palace last week, has been involved in nine goals in eight Premier League games against Villa (six goals, three assists), though all six of his goals against them have come at Villa Park. No player has scored more against an opponent without netting a home goal in the competition.

Aston Villa - Emiliano Martinez

Fresh from winning the Yashin Trophy for a second time, Martinez will no doubt be out to prove his credentials as the best in the world.

Keeping a clean sheet and helping Unai Emery's team to victory would be a good start.

MATCH PREDICTION: TOTTENHAM WIN

Spurs have lost two of their last three league matches, but Opta's supercomputer backs them to come out on top on Sunday.

Tottenham have scored 49 goals in 23 home Premier League games under Ange Postecoglou. The only boss to hit 50 goals in 24 or fewer home games with Spurs is Antonio Conte (50 in his first 20).

Only two of Tottenham's last 71 home Premier League games have ended as a draw (W47 L22) and they are the only side without a home draw since the start of last season (W16 L7).

Just Liverpool (13) and Nottingham Forest (11) have won more away Premier League points this season than Villa (10 – W3 D1). Villa have only won as many as four of their opening five away league games in a season once before, doing so in 2020-21 (W4 L1).

Tottenham have lost three of their last four Premier League meetings with Villa, though did win the last such match 4-0 in March, so while Opta's model fancies Spurs' chances, Villa will certainly be no pushovers.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Tottenham - 49.5%

Aston Villa - 27.6%

Draw - 22.9%

Unai Emery refused to blame his team selection as Aston Villa missed out on the EFL Cup quarter-finals after their 2-1 defeat to Crystal Palace.

Villa were dumped out of the competition in the fourth round, as Palace stunned the home crowd with Eberechi Eze's headed opener.

Both Eze and Adam Wharton were forced off injured in the first half, during which Jhon Duran levelled proceedings, though Daichi Kamada slammed into the bottom-left corner from outside the box to snatch the win.

Leon Bailey, John McGinn and Diego Carlos were the only regular starters Emery fielded in a rotated lineup, though the Villa manager defended his decision after the full-time whistle.

"We started with 11 players who are in the first team," Emery told Sky Sports. "We started with Tyrone Mings and Diego Carlos, and they can play normally in the starting 11.

"We started with [Ian] Maatsen, [Boubacar] Kamara, McGinn, Duran and [Emiliano] Buendia. I don't know if I can have any regrets.

"Today, we competed and we lost, but we competed with the idea of players getting performances. Of course, we are frustrated, but if I repeated it again, I would play with the same players."

Oliver Glasner's Palace have struggled in the Premier League, leaving this result as somewhat of a surprise against Champions League opposition.

Victory came at a cost, however, as Eze limped off with a hamstring issue and Wharton suffered a groin problem.

"[We] started the game well," Glasner told Sky Sports. "The problem [with Eze] was his hamstring, and we don't know how serious it is.

"We concede and then have Adam's [Wharton] groin issue. [On Tuesday] he said he was fine, but his pain got worse. It's too early, but I am positive as it's nothing new. He has had groin problems for many months. 

"We thought he needed a break, but yesterday, he gave the thumbs up."

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery said his side deserved the win after they were pegged back in a late 1-1 draw by Bournemouth in the Premier League. 

Coming on the back of a 2-0 defeat of Bologna – their third straight win in the Champions League which propelled them to the top of the 36-team table – Villa were frustrated by a brilliant goalkeeping display from Mark Travers. 

But they found a way past the 25-year-old custodian in the 76th minute when Ross Barkley came off the bench to turn in a ball from Leon Bailey. 

The Cherries, however, had the final say at Villa Park as Evanilson glanced a Marcus Tavernier free-kick into the net to salvage a point for the visitors in the sixth minute of stoppage time. 

The result left Spanish tactician Emery frustrated as Villa were held to a third draw in four league matches, despite an expected goals (xG) tally of 1.8 and several attempts on target against the visitors on Saturday. 

"We played a fantastic match. We played I think the best minutes since the start of the season. The first half we controlled the game, but we didn't score, or when we did it was a no goal,” Emery told Sky Sports. 

"The second half we started even better than the first half. We were pushing, dominating, creating chances. The goalkeeper was saving a lot of times.

"We scored the goal, fantastic, but we didn't manage the last 10 minutes. They scored at the last moment and we have to accept it.