Crystal Palace defeat Liverpool on penalties to win Community Shield
Crystal Palace shocked Liverpool 3-2 on penalties to win the FA Community Shield at Wembley Stadium on Sunday.
The Eagles held Liverpool to a 2-2 draw in regulation time before prevailing in the shootout.
Liverpool, English Premier League (EPL) champions, and Crystal Palace, FA Cup winners, served up an entertaining encounter in which the Reds took the lead twice, but the Eagles pegged Arne Slot’s men back before winning it on a penalty shootout.
Victory sealed a first-ever Community Shield for Crystal Palace in their first-ever appearance. The Eagles have also won it in their first-ever meeting against Liverpool at Wembley Stadium.
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Liverpool handed starts to four new signings, including Florian Wirtz, their record buy, Hugo Ekitike, who led the attack, and the defence duo of Milos Kerkez and Jerome Frimpong.
It was familiar faces for Crystal Palace, last season’s FA Cup winners appearing in their first ever Community Shield match.
It took only four minutes for Liverpool to take the lead as their two expensive signings combined. Wirtz found Ekitike, and the £79m French striker rolled a low shot into the far corner for 1-0.
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The dominant champions, however, allowed Palace back into the game. Virgil van Dijk’s foul on Ismael Sarr gifted the Londoners a penalty kick, Mateta expertly dispatched for 1-1 on 17 minutes.
Frimpong restored the Reds’ lead four minutes later in fortuitous circumstances, his mishit cross nestled into the back of the net for 2-1.
Unlike the first half, Ekitike failed to capitalize on two quick opportunities early in the second half, sending a header wide and blazing over when well placed to strike.
Palace were thereafter denied twice by Alisson Becker, Liverpool goalkeeper, who saved a header before smothering Eberechi Eze’s shot to maintain his team’s lead.
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The Brazilian could not prevent Sarr from levelling the entertaining encounter on 77 minutes, the Senegalese winger slotting into the net at the near post for 2-2.
Both sides had chances to nick a late winner but were let down by poor finishing, before settling for penalties to decide the winner.
Mohamed Salah, quiet throughout the match, blazed the first kick over, and Dean Henderson, Palace’s goalkeeper, also saved kicks from Alexis MacAllister and Harvey Elliot to lead Palace to a 3-2 shootout win.
Crystal Palace ended a string of four consecutive defeats for debutants, becoming the first in five debutants to win the Community Shield.
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