Dean Henderson made five saves as Crystal Palace stunned Liverpool (Photo: Getty)
Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner had no doubts that his side would pull off a shock win at Liverpool on Sunday.
That is according to goalkeeper Dean Henderson who played a key role in the result that has had huge consequences at both ends of the Premier League table.
Liverpool were expected to go top of league when they faced an out of sorts Palace team at Anfield, only to fall to a 1-0 defeat – their first home loss of the season – courtesy of an early goal from Eberechi Eze.
With Arsenal going onto lose to Aston Villa at the Emirates just hours later, Manchester City are now two points clear at the top of the table and firm favourites to win a fourth straight title.
Palace meanwhile have moved eight points clear of the relegation zone, with Glasner picking up only his second win with the club since replacing Roy Hodgson in February.
In keeping with recent performances, Liverpool just weren’t at the races against Palace and incredibly wasteful with their chances, though huge credit must go to the Eagles’ resolute defence.
Henderson more than played his part, making several incredible saves, and has now revealed that Glasner was fully convinced the three points were in the bag before kick-off.
Oliver Glasner became Palace manager in February (Photo: Getty)
‘I’ve been working towards that performance now for a few weeks,’ the 27-year-old said as quoted by the Evening Standard.
‘The manager genuinely said to us, “We’re going to win today”, and that’s huge. We came here to win.
‘We were written off by every single person and that’s the best feeling. Eleven men in front of 62,000 people. There was only one [fanbase] celebrating and that was the 3,000 Palace fans, so I’m delighted.’
2023/24 Premier League champions odds:
As a Manchester United academy graduate, the victory would have tasted even sweeter for Henderson, who has had a tricky first season at Palace since moving from Old Trafford last summer.
The keeper spent the first-half of the campaign injured and has struggled to hold down the No.1 spot amid competition from Sam Johnstone, but with his fellow England shotstopper now sidelined for the rest of the season, he has a chance to prove himself.
And he believes he’s put himself in good stead to go to Euro 2024 as one of Jordan Pickford’s back-up keepers, despite having not been called up to the Three Lions since September 2022.
More Trending
‘I’ve been to hell and back, getting injury after injury and with things not quite working out,’ Henderson, who won his only England cap in 2020, added.
‘I’m happy now I’m back playing. That’s a big tick. I’d love to go in any capacity.
‘I’ll go and save shots, try and save penalties, help England out in any way. I’ll get the nod hopefully.’
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.