Crystal Palace 3-0 Middlesbrough: clinical despite fewer shots
AI-written review based on match data · How we make it
Key numbers
- Shots 8 v 16: Palace were outshot
- 3 goals from 5 on target: clinical
- 4 saves from Benítez, clean sheet
Fewer shots, sharper finishing
Crystal Palace beat Middlesbrough 3-0 in the Round of 32 despite being outshot. Three goals from five shots on target told the story of the night. Only a quarter of Middlesbrough's attempts, 4 of their 16, were on target.
Benítez kept the visitors out
Middlesbrough had nine shots inside the box and won six corners, so the pressure was real. But six of their attempts were blocked, and Walter Benítez saved every effort that did reach his goal. The visitors had no consolation to show for it.
Strand Larsen got the first two
Jørgen Strand Larsen broke the deadlock in the 37th minute from an Óscar Mingueza assist, then added a second in the 53rd minute from Ben Chilwell's pass. The opener, which turned 0-0 into 1-0, was worth +0.6 FN xPts. From there Palace spent 53 minutes in front of a Middlesbrough side that never found a way back.
Kamada's cameo and a busy back line
Daichi Kamada came on in the 59th minute and scored the third in the 72nd, set up by Strand Larsen. At the back, Chilwell and Mingueza each made six tackles and each also provided an assist. Will Hughes added eight defensive actions in midfield.
Player of the match
Jørgen Strand Larsen 8.7Dominant
He scored twice, assisted once and won 8 of his 13 duels.
Most of his FN Score came from attack: two of his three shots were on target and both went in, and he set up Kamada's goal in the 72nd minute. Only 10 of his 20 passes found a team-mate, but his goal in the 37th minute opened the scoring and gave Palace the lead for the rest of the match.
Game state
1-02-03-0
Crystal Palace ahead 53 min · level 37 min · Middlesbrough ahead 0 min
- Daichi Kamada — off the bench 31 min · 1G 0A
FN xPts — what each moment was worth
How much each moment changed that team's expected points (win 3, draw 1). A goal's value is credited 70% to the scorer and 30% to the assist.
37'
Jørgen Strand Larsen
Goal · scorer +0.4 · assist Óscar Mingueza +0.2
+0.6
53'
Jørgen Strand Larsen
Goal · assist Ben Chilwell
+0.2
72'
Daichi Kamada
Goal · assist Jørgen Strand Larsen
0.0
Knockout ties have no league points, so moments are weighed on a win-3/draw-1 scale only.
Pre-match expectation for Middlesbrough is an estimate: no top-five-league record, so it uses the published starting values.
How FN Score and FN xPts work →
Match stats
Crystal PalaceMiddlesbrough
The data provider has no xG (expected goals) for this match.
Compared with usual
Crystal Palace
3 matches this season, all competitions baseline
Timeline
- 37'
Goal
Jørgen Strand Larsen competition goal #1 assist Óscar Mingueza
- 46'
Sub
Sam Byram → Neto Borges
- 53'
Goal
Jørgen Strand Larsen competition goal #2 assist Ben Chilwell
- 59'
Sub
Darío Osorio → Daichi Kamada
- 59'
Sub
Quinten Timber → Adam Wharton
- 65'
Yellow
Adilson Malanda
- 67'
Sub
Tommy Conway → Leo Castledine
- 67'
Sub
David Strelec → Will Lankshear
- 72'
Goal
Daichi Kamada competition goal #1 assist Jørgen Strand Larsen
- 73'
Sub
Axel Disasi → Jefferson Lerma
- 73'
Sub
Yéremy Pino → Dwight McNeil
- 73'
Sub
Jørgen Strand Larsen → Zavier Gozo
- 77'
Sub
Adilson Malanda → Ashley Phillips
- 83'
Yellow
Myles Peart-Harris
- 84'
Sub
Aidan Morris → Rokas Pukštas
Category leaders
- Key passesMyles Peart-Harris3
- Duels wonWill Hughes8/13
- DribblesCallum Brittain4/6
- Defensive actionsWill Hughes8
- ShotsJørgen Strand Larsen3 (on target 2)
- Fouls wonAidan Morris3
#Crystal Palace#Middlesbrough#EFL Cup#Jørgen Strand Larsen#Daichi Kamada#Walter Benítez
This review was written by AI from match data (API-Football). FN Score and FN xPts are calculated by Fulltime Note using a published formula.