Premier League winners and losers: Win the Manchester derby, win the league
By Ty Finch
Winner: Crystal Palace vs. Bournemouth
In a week that saw two massive derbies take place, the game of the week may have been Palace vs. Bournemouth. Thirty-five combined shots, (24 for Palace) 28 fouls, nine corners and four goals later, the match between the 14th and 20th-place clubs ended in a draw.
The main story will surely be Christian Benteke’s head-scratching decision to ignore his manager’s instructions for the extra time penalty. Luka Milivojevic is Palace’s dedicated penalty taker as Roy Hogdson admitted in the post-game interview, and buried a spot kick in the first half. However, Benteke overruled both his teammates and manager’s word and stepped up to take a timid, uncertain shot that Asmir Begovic could’ve saved without the use of his limbs to keep the Belgian off Palace’s score sheet this season.
In stark contrast to Benteke’s meek missed penalty, Jermain Defoe scored one of the best goals of the early season. Defoe ran after a long ball over the defense that Scott Dann couldn’t deal with, but the angle was acute and difficult to score from. Instead of holding play up and attempting to find a teammate, Defoe placed a powerful, looping strike over Julian Speroni’s arms. It was his second of the game, and the third time in a row he’s bagged a brace against Palace.
3 - Jermain Defoe has scored a brace in each of his last three Premier League appearances against Crystal Palace; his longest such run against a single opponent. Orthodontist.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 9, 2017
All four goals were scored in the first half of this game, but the second was still full of open, attacking soccer. The draw, coupled with wins from West Ham and Swansea, sees Palace drop back to the bottom of the table, but they may not stay there for long if they continue their form.