It was a little after the half-hour mark when Daniel Munoz thought his moment had finally come.
The Colombian was sprinting forward in the inside-left channel in anticipation of Ismaila Sarr, liberated by Will Hughes’ pass, delivering the final ball of a breakneck counter attack. When it came, the centre was perfect, expertly bypassing Newcastle’s backtracking defenders. Munoz’s eyes widened, his heart must have beat a little faster.
His first Crystal Palace goal was there for the taking.
Perhaps that explained the rush-of-blood-to-the-head finish. As the ball flashed across goal, the wing-back connected only to slam his finish against the advertising hoarding behind the goal. The net rippled, but only off the rebound. His best chance to open his account for the club he had joined from Belgian club Genk in January had gone begging. Munoz, dejected, must have wished the ground could swallow him up.
Over on the touchline, Oliver Glasner could scarcely believe his team had failed to take the lead. But on Saturday there would be a sting in the tail.
Fast forward to the end of the game, and the frenzy almost five minutes into added time. Glasner’s arm was stretched across Munoz’s chest towards his neck, but not in anger or frustration. Rather, in elation. The pair were buried in a mess of Palace players deliriously celebrating the most unlikely of late equalising goals after the 28-year-old dramatically headed in Marc Guehi’s cross to rescue a deserved point.
It was unlikely in so many ways. Unlikely because Palace had struggled to create chances in the final 20 minutes. Unlikely because the crowd had become so restless that they were scarcely supporting their team any more. Unlikely because Munoz had failed to score in 31 appearances for the club and because that missed opportunity in the first half still weighed heavy upon him. Not to mention a second, tougher chance that was blocked superbly by Dan Burn on the line.
This was redemption.
Munoz’s goal, as dramatic as it was, should not take away from how emblematic his first-half miss was of Palace’s season to date; a flash of brilliance in their play, especially on the counter attack, followed by an excellent ball across goal from Sarr, only for the finish to end up on the wrong side of the post. Munoz was stretching, it was his non-dominant left foot, but still… he should have scored.
That Newcastle, who did not muster a shot on target all afternoon, took the lead early in the second half courtesy of Guehi’s own goal rather summed up the margins that are not falling for Palace. Every mistake, every missed opportunity, is being punished. They are no longer in the relegation zone, but they must reduce the individual errors at both ends of the pitch if that is to remain the case.
Munoz has played every game since he arrived in January. This is the same attack-minded wing-back who scored 15 goals for Genk across his three and a half years there, and who showed so much attacking promise and threat last season.
This time around his boundless energy remains undiminished, but there has been less purpose to his play and, as a result, less impact. Michael Olise’s absence up the flank might be one factor. How much that has been affected by a slight hamstring twinge Munoz has managed since before the October international break is uncertain, but there was no holding him back as he leapt at the back post to convert Guehi’s cross.
His defending is not always the most secure, but Munoz can make up for it by helping to create opportunities in attack. That has arguably not come often enough. This was the first time this season that he has converted that willingness to get forward into real reward.
“He’s unbelievable,” Glasner said after the 1-1 draw. “He had just one training session with us after twice playing 90 minutes for Colombia (in World Cup qualifying defeats against Uruguay and Ecuador) with all the travelling and the time difference. He was sprinting 600m at Aston Villa (in Palace’s 2-2 draw last week). It shows his condition but also his heart and character. He’s a fantastic player.”
Glasner raced to the corner flag to join the celebrations after the equaliser, receiving a yellow card for leaving his technical area — not that he was concerned in the slightest at that. The emotion and relief at his side securing parity outweighed any concerns over a sanction. It ranked, he said, as second in the top yellow cards he has received over his managerial career.
“The first one was when we played Olympiacos in our European journey (with Eintracht Frankfurt in the 2021-22 season). It was 1-1 and I was really upset with one of my players,” he said in his post-match press conference. “The ball came straight to me and I kicked it out into the stand. That was the turnaround because we won 2-1 and we didn’t lose any game afterwards when we won the Europa League.
“So this is number two. If we have the same (effect) in the Premier League, maybe it’ll be the number one in a few years.”
What a moment. pic.twitter.com/n05BnXwFcy
— Five Year Plan 🦅 (@FYPFanzine) November 30, 2024
The goal must rank highly for Munoz, too. If it acts as inspiration for Palace to turn around their form, then there will be no question about how important it was.
His contrasting fortunes neatly reflect both his and Palace’s difficult season to date, but there can be no doubting his energy and commitment. Lacking quality in the final moments has been a problem. They must draw inspiration from their wing-back’s own recovery to ensure they thrust themselves clear of those at the foot of the table.
(Top photo: Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images)
