MY ACCOUNT
Brentford ended their five-game Premier League losing streak with a goalless draw against Crystal Palace, whose winless run stretches to five matches.
The Bees came into the contest off the back of consecutive losses against Southampton, Liverpool, Manchester United, Wolves and Manchester City, while Palace have not mustered a league victory since the turn of the year.
In a cagey affair, the two sides managed just five shots on target between them and neither was able to take control of proceedings or create anything of note.
This point arrests Brentford’s decline and keeps them seven points clear of the relegation zone, albeit having played two games more than 18th-placed Norwich.
Brentford boss Thomas Frank felt his side deserved to snatch all three points, but focused on the positives from the game.
He said: “We got a point, first and foremost. I think this performance is the same level as the Wolves game – if there should have been a narrow winner, it should have been us.
“Today, again, it should have been a narrow winner – us. We created good opportunities. We gave one chance away which was our only mistake, I’d say. If we can keep that up, we’d be in a good place.
“We needed to create more to get one goal – that’s maybe down to the quality on the day. There are a lot of positives to take from this game.”
Palace head coach Patrick Vieira, meanwhile, suggested that a draw was fair and credited both sides for their work without the ball.
He said: “In possession, I don’t think we linked well enough to give them problems. I think out of possession we did fantastically well. The front three helped us defensively. Overall, I think the draw is fair for both teams.
“I think it’s all credit to the opposition team. We came here with the plan to create chances and trouble the opposition team, but they made it very difficult for us. As a team, I’m happy with the point we took today.
“It’s fantastic to have talent in your team, but we need a plan together – how we can create chances and score goals. At the moment, that’s a step forward we need to make as a team. We have the talent, but it’s not going to be enough.”
Did you know?
Brentford ended a run of five straight Premier League defeats with a draw here and registered a clean sheet for the first time in 12 top-flight games (since a 1-0 win over Everton on November 28).
Palace have won just two of their last 13 Premier League games (D5 L6) and are winless in their last five since a 3-0 victory over Norwich in December.
Brentford are without a win in six league games (D1 L5), their longest winless run in the league since December 2018 (also six).
Palace have enjoyed just one away win in the league this season (2-0 against Manchester City in October), with Burnley and Barnsley the only sides in England’s top four tiers with fewer victories on the road this season (none for either).
Since returning to the Premier League in 2013-14, Crystal Palace have failed to score in the first half of 220 games in the competition, 40 more than any other side (Newcastle are next on 180) while the Eagles have also been involved in a competition-high 118 goalless first halves in that period.
Wilfried Zaha made his 250th Premier League appearance for Crystal Palace, just the third African player to hit that milestone for a single club in the competition, after Shola Ameobi (294 for Newcastle) and Didier Drogba (254 for Chelsea).
