Crystal Palace cannot do without their Japanese international; Spurs, despite a depleted squad, secure a 1-0 away win over the Eagles to end their two-game losing streak in the Premier League.

At 00:30 on December 29 Beijing time, the 18th round of the Premier League saw a London derby with Crystal Palace facing Tottenham at home.

In the first half, Richarlison’s goal was ruled out, then the Brazilian forward assisted Gray’s header to open the scoring, putting Spurs ahead 1-0 at halftime; in the second half, Derviny squandered a good opportunity, Richarlison had a goal disallowed again, and Odobert’s shot struck the post.

In the end, Tottenham edged Crystal Palace 1-0 away, halting their two-match losing streak in the Premier League, sitting 11th with 25 points; Crystal Palace ranked 9th with 26 points.

For Crystal Palace vs Tottenham, Glasner deployed a 3-4-2-1 formation with Mateta leading the attack, supported by Derviny and Pino behind him; Klein, Walton, Hughes, and Mitchell formed the midfield four; Leyma, Lacroix, and Guey made up the back three, with Henderson in goal, totaling a starting lineup value of €301 million. Flick set up a 4-2-3-1 for Spurs, with Richarlison upfront, supported by Berriwal behind, flanked by Muani and Kudus; Gray and Bentancur partnered in defensive midfield; Spence, Vanderveen, Danso, and Polo formed the back four, with Vicario in goal, and a starting lineup valued at €399 million.

Both teams faced challenges in this match: Crystal Palace played two games in a week and were without their midfield core, Japanese international Kamada Daichi; Tottenham fielded a weakened side with striker Solanke and midfield key Madison still injured, while Simmons and Romero were suspended after red cards last round. Crystal Palace dominated possession with over 60% and nearly twice as many shots as Spurs, but without Kamada Daichi’s orchestration, their attack lacked direction and rhythm, like a fighter jet without radar. Striker Mateta seemed to be sleepwalking, showing inconsistency far from star quality. Spurs, with a depleted squad, played pragmatically on the counterattack. Richarlison was unlucky with two disallowed goals but still assisted Gray’s header for the only goal of the match. Ultimately, Spurs narrowly won 1-0 away, securing valuable three points and ending their two-game losing streak, while Crystal Palace suffered their third consecutive league defeat.

Throughout the match, Crystal Palace held 62% possession, registering 15 shots with 2 on target; Tottenham had 8 shots with 4 on target.