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Tottenham vs Crystal Palace: Fans ‘head for exits’ after Sarr, Strand Larsen goals and Van de Ven red card in Premier League

The latest from Spurs vs Palace in the Premier League

Written by Ben Miller
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Tottenham vs Crystal Palace: Fans ‘head for exits’ after Sarr, Strand Larsen goals and Van de Ven red card in Premier League

Tottenham fans endured a rollercoaster first half at home to Crystal Palace on Thursday as their side took the lead, had Micky van de Ven sent off and fell 3-1 behind by half-time.

An uneventful first 30 minutes at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium prefaced visiting winger Ismaila Sarr’s finish taking a sizeable deflection off Pedro Porro on its way into the net.

Palace head coach Oliver Glasner wagged a finger when Sarr was adjudged to have been offside following a Video Assistant Referee check, with Solanke swiftly meeting Archie Gray’s cross at the other end to strike from close range and turn the atmosphere around at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The celebrations had barely ended when Van de Ven denied Sarr a clear scoring opportunity by pulling him down, earning the Spurs defender a red card and the Senegal international a chance he took to convert the 40th-minute equaliser.

Jorgen Strand Larsen and Sarr each then slotted in from Adam Wharton passes during added time to put Palace two goals ahead.

TV coverage appeared to show some Tottenham fans leaving the stadium before the half-time whistle.

MinuteTimeline
30Sarr strike ruled out by VAR
34Solanke puts Spurs ahead
38Van de Ven sent off
40Sarr levels from spot
45+1Strand Larsen gives Palace lead
45+7Sarr makes scoreline 3-1

Analysis: Van de Ven ‘instincts kick in’ for red card

Former Spurs goalkeeper Joe Hart called Archie Gray’s control and determination inside the box “unbelievable” but the TNT Sports analyst was considerably less impressed by Van de Ven’s foul.

“Goodness me,” said Hart. “Sarr gets the wrong side of Van de Ven and his instincts kick in. He makes no attempt for the ball.

“I don’t even think Sarr was getting to the ball. He just doesn’t need to do that.”

Hart described interim Spurs head coach Igor Tudor’s tactics, which appeared to include Solanke as an isolated striker, as “confusing”.

Tudor is now on track for a third defeat from three games since taking temporary charge.

Former Palace striker Glenn Murray called Sarr’s first goal “very cool”. “[He took a] really slow walk up, waited for the goalkeeper to go to his left and put it into the empty net,” Murray told BBC Sport.

“I am watching – people are heading to the exits.”

Tottenham team vs Palace

Tottenham made four changes: left-back Souza was given his first start for the club, with Kevin Danso also coming in at the back.

Winger Mathys Tel was also included, as was Pape Matar Sarr. Xavi Simons, Conor Gallagher and Yves Bissouma moved to the bench and Radu Dragusin was not involved.

Defenders Cristian Romero, Ben Davies, Destiny Udogie and Djed Spence, midfielders Rodrigo Bentancur, Lucas Bergvall, James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski and wingers Mohammed Kudus and Wilson Odobert were injured.

Tottenham starting XI: Guglielmo Vicario, Kevin Danso, Micky van de Ven, Souza, Pedro Porro, Pape Matar Sarr, Joao Palhinha, Archie Gray, Dominic Solanke, Mathys Tel, Randal Kolo Muani

Tottenham substitutes: Antonin Kinsky, Brandon Austin, Xavi Simons, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison, Conor Gallagher, Callum Olusesi, Rio Kyerematen, James Rowswell

Crystal Palace team vs Tottenham

On-loan Aston Villa forward Guessand, who had two goals in his previous three appearances, replaced former Tottenham livewire Brennan Johnson in one of two Palace changes.

Chadi Riad supplanted the suspended Maxence Lacroix following the defender’s second-half dismissal during their 2-1 defeat at Manchester United four days earlier.

Midfielders Cheick Doucoure and Jefferson Lerma and strikers Jean-Philippe Mateta and Eddie Nketiah were sidelined.

Crystal Palace starting XI: Dean Henderson, Jaydee Canvot, Chris Richards, Chadi Riad, Tyrick Mitchell, Daniel Munoz, Adam Wharton, Daichi Kamada, Ismaila Sarr, Jorgen Strand Larsen, Evann Guessand

Palace substitutes: Walter Benitez, Nathaniel Clyne, Jefferson Lerma, Borna Sosa, Will Hughes, Justin Devenny, Yeremy Pino, Brennan Johnson, Christantus Uche

How to watch Spurs vs Palace: TV channel, live online stream

DateKick-off timeChannelStreaming
Thursday, March 520:00 GMT (15:00 ET / 12:00 PT)TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports UltimateDiscovery Plus

TNT Sports costs £29.99 a month through Discovery Plus+, which includes Eurosport and entertainment and is available on a vast range of devices including smart TVs and gaming consoles.

Tottenham vs Crystal Palace stats

  • This is the eighth Premier League game played on a Thursday this season, with the previous seven comprising three 1-1 draws and four 0-0 draws
  • The goals per game average of 0.86 on Thursdays in 2025/26 had been the lowest on any day of the week in a Premier League season with more than one match played on the day
  • Spurs are winless in their last 12 midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) Premier League games (D3 L9) since beating Brentford 3-2 in January 2024
  • Tottenham have won 16 of their last 21 Premier League matches against Crystal Palace (D2 L3), although they have lost two of their last three against the Eagles
  • They have lost six of their last seven home league London derbies (W1), including four of their five this season – already their most home London derby losses in a single league campaign
  • Their run of one win in their last 13 home games in the Premier League (D4 L8) – beating Brentford 2-0 in December – represents the second time they have had only one victory over a run of at least 13 home games
  • The other occasion was during the 1993/94 season, when Spurs won one of their final 16
  • Midfielder Conor Gallagher has scored more Premier League goals against Crystal Palace than any other opponent (4). He also scored eight goals in 34 league appearances on loan at the Eagles in 2021/22, with only Wilfried Zaha netting more for them that term (14)
  • After nine consecutive away league defeats at Tottenham Hotspur between 2015/16 and 2023/24, Palace won this exact fixture 2-0 last season. They have never won consecutive away league games against Spurs
  • This is Palace’s third consecutive Premier League meeting with Spurs while above them in the table. They’d only been above Spurs in two of their previous 22 against them (excluding games on the opening day ) since their return to the top-flight in 2013
  • One of Palace’s last nine away London derby matches in the Premier League (W5 D3) has resulted in defeat, losing 1-0 at Arsenal in October
  • Glasner has won both of his previous meetings with Tudor: his Eintracht Frankfurt side won home and away against Tudor’s Marseille during the 2022/23 Champions League group stage

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