A brace from Ismaila Sarr and a first half strike from Trevoh Chalobah ensured Oliver Glasner's Crystal Palace were victorious against Brighton.
The Seagulls did claw one back through a Marc Guehi own goal but were decisively defeated 3-1 by the Eagles who continued their upturn in form.
Palace's victory against their bitter rivals at the south coast was their second successive away win, and stretched their unbeaten run to five, but what else did we learn during a memorable day for the Eagles?
-
Bragging Rights
Palace had not beaten their nemesis since a famous 'smash and grab' victory in February 2021 when Jean-Phillipe Mateta and Christian Benteke fired the Eagles to a 2-1 victory.
Since that win the two sides met have met six times, drawing four and Brighton winning twice. Most notably was last time out at the AMEX Stadium were the Seagulls decimated Palace 4-1 which ultimately spelt the end of Roy Hodgson's second tenure as manager of the Eagles.
The victory established a recent dominance over their counterparts, with Brighton also able to showcase a Europa League campaign.
Palace were able to salvage some dignity, finishing the season strongly after a surge in form once Glasner took over, and ending up finishing one point above Brighton last season, but after a poor start to the new campaign for Palace it appeared they would continue in the shadow of their South Coast rivals.
Glasner vowed his players would understand what it meant for the fans and all those involved at the club, and the Austrian manager delivered on his promise, orchestrating a dominant display which saw Palace dismantle their rivals relatively comfortably. The dazzling performance delivered an early Christmas present, sparking triumphant celebrations and the return of bragging rights back to South London.
-
Ismaila Sarr is Devastating
A match against your bitter rivals becomes an opportunity for a player to write themselves into folklore, and establish themselves as a club hero. Ismaila Sarr was the man to take that opportunity.
After joining from Olympique Marseille in the summer for a reported £12.5 million, Sarr has had to bide his time for opportunities.
The Senegalese forward was initially utilised off the bench but has forced his way into the starting eleven recently.
It is no surprise that the usage of Sarr in a starting role has correlated with the upturn in the Eagles form, with the 26-year-old possessing a devastating skill set.
The raw pace and elite athleticism of Sarr will cause problems to any defence in the world, and now he has settled into his new environment at Selhurst Park, the overall play is starting to click.
Sarr had shown glimpses of his impact, winning the penalty which saw Palace equalise in the 2-2 draw against Leicester, before really making his mark during the 2-2 draw against Aston Villa where Sarr terrorised the Villans defence and contributed a goal and an assist.
Despite those two goal contributions marking the only ones of Sarr's season so far, his directness, and link up play has caused a constant threat, and helped Palace turn the corner and provide more of an attacking spark after a bleak start to the season.
Sunday's victory saw the best of Sarr. There was some fortune with the assist with the ball just striking the Senegalse forward before landing perfectly at the feet of Chalobah to strike into the roof of the net.
If the first goal contribution was fortunate, the second certainly was not. After brilliant work from Tyrick Mitchell on the left-hand side, the wing-back delivered a pinpoint cross, and Sarr showed his determination and athleticism to power through the Brighton defenders before expertly heading back across goal into the far corner to send the travelling supporters into raptures.
Sarr was a constant menace to the Seagulls defence, positioning himself effectively to drive into space on the Palace right-hand side, but also offering ample support to Mateta to pick up threatening central areas.
The superb afternoon was wrapped up with Sarr's second goal of the game, when the Palace forward used his blistering pace and strength to bulldoze onto an Eddie Nketiah flick-on before showing his composure to cooly slot into the bottom right corner and seal the game beyond all doubt.
-
The Effect of the Summer Signings
Sarr was obviously a pivotal factor, but he was not the only summer signing to impress.
Chalobah scored the opening goal after joining on loan from Chelsea, and was part of a resolute back three with Maxence Lacroix and Marc Guehi.
Lacroix joined from VfL Wolfsburg for a reported £18 million, and the Frenchman marshalled the defence superbly from the centre of the three.
With Palace playing a very high line, the recovery pace of Lacroix was evident on many occasions, and all three members of the defence stepped in effectively, won their duels and showed their progressive ability on the ball.
Other summer signings Nketiah and Daichi Kamada also featured off the bench, and Nketiah was pivotal to the final goal, winning the flick on to allow Sarr to race through.
The former Arsenal man was sharp during his cameo appearance, harrying the Brighton defenders with intensity, diligently running the channels and helping Palace to advance in transition.
Kamada also impressed when replacing Eze, and offered ample defensive support as well as providing some intricate link-up and creativity.
With the summer signings now appearing to be more settled and reaching full fitness, expect the performance levels to increase, and the Palace 2024 summer contingent to push on.
-
Oliver Glasner's Tactical Masterclass
One of the reasons Palace were able to dominate the Brighton, was because Glasner was able to win the tactical battle against Fabian Hurzeler.
Palace set up in their usual 3-4-2-1 formation but with a few tweaks. Palace initially pressed in a 4-4-2 with Sarr joining Mateta, before reverting back into their traditional shape in recovery.
The Eagles were also aggressive with their defensive line, defending high, and often used their press and defensive line to entice Brighton to play more direct which benefitted the Palace back three who also possess recovery pace and are fantastic duel winners.
In attack, Palace looked to play quickly in transition, using the spaces vacated by Pervis Estupiñán in particular to allow Sarr to combat Lewis Dunk one on one in a mismatch.
They also looked to play into Mateta who pinned Jan Paul Van Hecke effectively, the Dutch centre back the weaker in the air of the Brighton central pairing.
By choosing to target the weaknesses of both defenders, Palace caused disarray within the Brighton backline, and Tariq Lamptey and Estupiñán were forced to either drop deeper, or risk allowing Palace space to attack into which the Eagles utilised effectively in the first half to create several opportunities.
The second half saw a more conservative approach with Palace looking to see the game out, but the substitutions used by Glasner showed a key focus on transition, and his vision was evident when Nketiah flicked on for Sarr to seal the three points.
A potentially season defining victory for Palace masterminded by Glasner, and the Eagles can now perhaps begin to look up as they now prepare for an EFL Cup Quarter-Final against Arsenal on Wednesday.
