Story by[]Adam Cottier - BBC Radio London commentatorThu, December 4, 2025 at 8:20 AM UTC·2 min readOn a cold night in east Lancashire, Oliver Glasner trusted his players to show the kind of endeavour that will be required in the coming weeks, or at least until Crystal Palace are able to strengthen their squad. This was their 23rd match of a gruelling campaign and came on the back of successive losses that had prompted Glasner to speak out over the club's lack of major summer transfer activity. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe players he does have at his disposal orchestrated a gusty win at Turf Moor, hardly laden with attacking prowess, but exemplary when out of possession. Shorn of Ismaila Sarr, Glasner opted to make sure his team had control in midfeild, selecting Jefferson Lerma over the more forward-thinking Eddie Nketiah. Glasner has a rigid system, and it is a shape that limits Nketiah's chances of starting when Jean-Philippe Mateta is the first choice centre-forward. The goal Palace managed to score came from that midfield control. Marc Guehi has a fine ability to move into space in the left channel, overloading the midfield, and his crossing ability saw him supply the wicked cross for Daniel Munoz to head in brilliantly. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIf Glasner is concerned over recruitment then he can have few qualms about the quality of recruitment when it does happen. So often, Munoz looks as good as any wing-back in the Premier League. His running never ceases, a player others must be inspired by. The same goes for Guehi - but there is so much graft in this team.
