Crystal Palace player ratings for 0-0 draw at Leicester City – Guiata scores highly but Doucoure and Zaha both fail to impress

Crystal Palace recorded their second Premier League clean sheet of the season after they played out a 0-0 draw with bottom-of-the-table Leicester City.

Here are Edmund Brack’s player ratings from the King Power:

Vicente Guaita – 8 

Kept Palace in the contest during the first half. Did well to stand up tall in the 16th minute and deny Harvey Barnes from close range. Showed intelligent decision-making, too, opting to punch a handful of James Maddison’s dangerous free-kicks.

Joel Ward – 5

He was beaten with ease by Harvey Barnes multiple times in the first half. A quick give-and-go from Barnes and a surrounding player took Ward out of the equation. Settled in the second half, made five clearances and completed 100 per cent of his tackles.

Marc Guehi – 7

Made four blocks – the most of any player on the pitch – and also completed five clearances to help Palace sweep any danger away from Vicente Guaita’s goal. He also had the second most amount of touches (83) and passes (67) of any Palace player. Also recorded a 93 per cent passing accuracy and three interceptions. Should have done better with the header he had in the 29th minute, placing Eberechi Eze’s corner way over Danny Ward’s goal.

Joachim Andersen – 6

The most passes (88) and touches (96) of any Palace player at the King Power. Was beaten in a foot race with Patson Daka on a handful of occasions in the first half. Picked up an early yellow card in the 11th minute and had to be conservative when defending for the rest of the match. Won the most aerial battles, six, but also committed three fouls.

Tyrick Mitchell – 4

Was taken off 11 minutes into the second half. Couldn’t get involved going forward either.

Cheick Doucoure – 4

Was also taken off alongside Mitchell and was replaced by Milivojevic. Doucoure was booked in the first minute of the second half for a foul of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, which left Palace vulnerable with Andersen also on a yellow. Had space in the opening stages of the match to pass between the lines, but a tactical tweak from Brendan Rodgers limited Palace and Doucoure’s ability to find players in space. He should have shot in the fifth minute when the ball fell to him on the edge of the box. Instead, the Mali midfielder passed on to Wilfried Zaha to lose possession. The rating is more a reflection of how vulnerable Doucoure is now that he is the only out-and-out defensive midfielder in the side.

Jeffrey Schlupp – 5

Had the best pass percentage( 95) of any Palace player. However, he failed to get involved and had the fewest touches and passes of any player who started the match. He also failed to complete a single dribble of the two he attempted and lost possession twice.

Eberechi Eze – 5

Completed four of his five dribbles, and around half [23 of his 45] of his passes were forward-thinking. Came closest to opening the scoring for the Eagles in the first half, sending an effort just over Ward’s goal from the edge of the box in the 42nd minute. Faded out of the game in the second half.

Wilfried Zaha – 4 

While you should never take your most clinical player off when all three points are still up for grabs, Wilfried Zaha had a frustrating afternoon at the King Power. He lost possession eight times – the most of any player on the pitch – and only completed one of his three dribbles. He was replaced by Jean-Philippe Mateta in the 77th minute.

Odsonne Edouard – 6

Was just growing into the game when he struck Palace’s only shot at goal in the 63rd minute. Had to feed off scraps and was isolated for large parts of the game, with both wingers – Zaha and Ayew – miles away from linking up with the French forward. Needs to be given a run of games to establish himself as the clear first-choice centre forward in the squad.

Jordan Ayew – 5

Did what he does best well and won possession back four times for the Eagles. However, he was only five a handful of minutes to show he could play in the centre-forward role after Edouard was replaced by Michael Olise. Lost possession five times and failed to complete a single dribble.

SUBS:

Luka Milivojevic – 5 

Helped secure the point. He could be given a run of games in the side in the future to help Doucoure with defensive responsibilities.

Jairo Riedewald – 7

Considering it was his first Premier League appearance since the 3-2 loss at home to West Ham on New Year’s Day last year, Jairo Riedewald was excellent. He did not look out of place, was extremely aware of his surroundings and won two of his three tackles. The Dutchman also made two clearances and made 18 forward passes during his 35 minutes on the pitch.

Michael Olise – 4

Didn’t have the desired impact needed. The Frenchman failed to complete a single of his two dribbles.

Jean Philippe Mateta – 4

Failed to impact the game. Only won one aeriel battle.