A lesson in clinical finishing – Palace captain Ward delivers verdict after heavy loss to Tottenham

BY ANDREW MCSTEEN

Joel Ward admitted that Tottenham Hotspur gave his Crystal Palace side a lesson in clinical finishing on Wednesday night.

The Palace defender saw his side concede four second-half goals from Matt Doherty, Son Heung-Min and a brace from England captain Harry Kane, in a 4-0 Premier League loss.

“You only need to give them half a chance and it’s in the back of the net,” Ward, who captained the Eagles at Selhurst Park, told Sky Sports.

“They were clinical with the chances that they had. We’ve seen it for years and years now with the quality that they have. Any strikers in the Premier League are going to punish you when they get the opportunity to. That’s what happens when you get punished by a top side. With the quality that they possess, they took the chances when they arose.”

Patrick Vieira’s side had dominated the first half chances, with Jordan Ayew having the best of them.

His 27th-minute strike was well-saved by World Cup finalist Hugo Lloris in the Spurs goal, but with the unmarked Michael Olise better-placed in the box for an almost-certain goal, it was indicative of the Eagles’ decision-making.

“In the first half we went toe-to-toe and had some chances and second half likewise, but they came away with a win,” said the 33-year-old Ward.

“There’s no reason why we couldn’t have gone on. For one reason or the other it just didn’t quite go our way this evening.

“You look at the scoreline and, as a group, we have to do better to nullify their threats, stay solid and once they do get ahead, we have to tighten and shut up shop so the scoreline doesn’t look like that.

“They got their chances and took them well. It’s a bitter pill to swallow, I don’t think the game reflected the scoreline but that’s football.”

The Eagles now have a break in Premier League action as they face a struggling Southampton side at Selhurst Park on Saturday in the FA Cup.

And Ward is desperate for the team to provide home fans with a win after his side have lost two straight in SE25 without scoring and conceding seven, following their 3-0 loss against Fulham on Boxing Day.

“Some of the patterns of play and some of the opportunities that were created,” said Ward about any positives he could take from the Spurs loss into the next game.

“We can go away with confidence in that [but] we dust ourselves down and go again.

“It’s disappointing to have the two games that we’ve had at home [but] we’ll come back strong and make sure that we prepare right for the next game and keep going in the right direction.”

PICTURE: KEITH GILLARD