Crystal Palace won back to back games for the first time this season when they saw off Aston Villa at Villa Park to book their place in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup.
Oliver Glasner and his Palace side will be facing Arsenal in the next round on December 17th, this is the first time since 2011 that Palace have reached the last eight of this competition.
But how did Palace mange to get past an Aston Villa side who sit fourth in the Premier League and top of the Champions League table with three wins from three.
Palace took the lead early on when Ebere Eze met a beautiful Daniel Munoz cross to put the visitors one up inside 10 minutes. Palace carried the same tempo as we saw on the weekend against Tottenham Hotspur, pressing high and playing quick combinations to create chances.
Only 10 minutes after taking the lead however, Palace were dealt a huge blow when Eze went down off the ball and needed to be subbed off. This took some of the wind out of Palace and not long after John Duran equalised for Villa to tie the game.
Things went from bad to worse for Palace when Adam Wharton went down holding his groin, which has been causing the 20-year-old trouble all season and also needed to be replaced.
Villa pushed Palace back from this point but failed to trouble Matt Turner in goal on his Palace debut.
The second half started similar to the first, Palace looked to press high and chase Emery's side problems, then 20 minutes into the second half Daichi Kamada latched onto a loose ball after a Villa goal kick, carried it to the centre of the goal before unleashing his strike past Joe Gauci.
Palace were back in front with less than half an hour to go. Similarly to the first half, Villa pushed but didn't cause too many problems as Palace saw out the game to progress to the next round.
-
Daichi Kamada's Palace career has begun
After Ebere Eze signalled to the bench that he needed to be substituted with what is said the be a hamstring injury, Daichi Kamada got himself ready to replace the England international.
Kamada was first used as the left sided "10" to begin with and was at fault for Villa.s equaliser. The highest player at the time for Palace Kamala's loose touch got away from him, Villa countered and worked the ball into Duran to level things up.
It was not the start Kamada would have hoped for in what has been a tough start to life in England.
This however, did not stop him impacting the game. Much like we have seen in other games this season it was not what the Japanese did with the ball, more what he did off it that was his best work.
He was dogged and tenacious to win the ball back high up the pitch for Palace and that is exactly where his goal came from. Pressing high from a goal kick before getting a clean strike off on goal.
His manager said after the game: "It was difficult for him to come into the game after 15 minutes and to play as a 10. He lost the ball before the equaliser [and] everybody would have liked to have a better start into a game like this."
"I spoke with him at half-time and said: 'Stay calm and score a goal.'
"He did it. I am very delighted for him"
After what has been a difficult start to his Crystal Palace career this goal will do Kamada the world of good and hopefully see a change on form going forward.
-
Injuries are stacking up for Glasner
After Jefferson Lerma went off against Tottenham with a hamstring problem and will not be expected back till after the international break the last thing Glasner needed was for two more midfield players to get hurt.
Well it only too 25 minutes for this to happen. Eze now has a fresh hamstring injury but was able to walk off the pitch and this may just be precaution. Adam Wharton however has had a groin issue going on since the summer and you would imagine now needs surgery.
Wharton and the club have been putting off going under the knife for a while now but last night could be the final straw.
It has been reported that the recovery time following surgery is around three weeks so it would be smart for Palace to do it just before the next set of internationals, this is so a large chunk of recovery time is when Palace do not have any fixtures.
Palace are short for numbers in a couple of areas as a result of last nights injures. It looks like a midfield will now consist of Kamada and Will Hughes since Cheick Doucoure is yet to return to the match day squad since his toe injury.
Further forward it means Eddie Nketiah will likely have to continue playing as a "10" rather than his preferred striker role. This is of course if Eze's injury is worse than first feared.
Numbers are low for Palace right now and points back to a lack of investment in the squad during the summer.
-
Palace's back three are as solid as any
It was clear after the win against Spurs that the Palace back line was finally a settled one and knew their responsibilities. Last night was only the fourth time the trio has started together so familiarity is still progressing but they are starting to understand each other more game by game.
As a result of the back three gaining a better understanding together, the rest of the team can start to press higher. Palace maintain a man to man marking system when they are pressing a team who are building up. You will often see one of the centre backs follow their marker all the way until they win the ball.
In the earlier part of the season Palace were unable to press as high because of the back three chopping and changing due to departures, new signings and injuries. Glasner seems to have found the correct personnel and Palace are reaping the rewards.
Marc Guehi has looked good on the left side after being tested out in the middle at the start of the season. While Trevoh Chalobah has slotted in comfortably on the right and is able to progress the ball and allow Daniel Munoz to get further forward.
It is Maxence Lacroix however who has been the standout in recent weeks for Palace, at the heart of the defence he has taken on the burden left by Joachim Anderson. The Frenchman's passing, pace and physicality all mean Palace can play in a different way both with and without the ball.
If Palace are to get themselves out of trouble in the league, keeping these three fit is a must.
-
An injury to Henderson will cost Palace
It was Matt Turner's first start for Palace against Villa, but he didn't cover himself in glory. At fault for the first goal where he let Duran's strike go under a weak glove it was not the start he would have wanted.
Although there were no other glaring mistakes in the game, much of what he did do looked awkward at times. There was a save he made in the first half which he should have caught with ease, instead he pushed it away for a corner.
Then throughout the game there were saves where he looked awkward making the stop.
Palace have been lucky with their second choice goalkeepers for a number of years with the likes of Sam Johnstone, Jack Butland and even Dean Henderson being the back up at times.
Palace will hope Henderson can stay fit for the long term otherwise the downgrade in goal may cost them.
