Palace beat Wolves as Joel Ward bids goodbye to Selhurst Park

Selhurst Park completed an unforgettable 100th-anniversary season and bade farewell to one of its favourite sons, Joel Ward, as Palace came out on top of a six-goal thriller to set a new Premier League points record – little over 72 hours after winning the FA Cup. 

Eddie Nketiah scored twice as Crystal Palace celebrated their FA Cup triumph with a thrilling 4-2 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Ward, on his 364th Crystal Palace appearance, some 13 years after his debut, was handed the captain’s armband and his first Premier League start of the season in his final home match at Selhurst Park.

Emmanuel Agbadou headed Wolves in front midway through the first half. That woke the hosts up, though, and Nketiah scored twice in the space of five first-half minutes to turn the match around.

Chelsea loanee Ben Chilwell’s deflected free-kick made it 3-1 shortly after half-time, though Jorgen Strand Larsen`s 62nd-minute header reignited Wolves` hopes.

But Palace`s Wembley hero Eberechi Eze came off the bench to score a decisive fourth goal and take the Eagles beyond the 50-point mark for the first time in their Premier League history. They stay 12th in the table, with Wolves in 14th spot.

Palace coach Oliver Glasner said, “We spoke about it before and we didn`t know what we would see and what we would get, so credit to the players. We had great energy on the pitch and that`s not easy after such a huge achievement. It`s an outstanding and incredible group and they showed it again. We trust every single one of the players and everyone has contributed to the success.”

Wolves boss Vitor Pereira added, “We cannot compete at this level if we offer gifts to them and in my opinion, they were four gifts. We must be focused until the last minute. We must be at our best level every time.”

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