Oliver Glasner’s first match in charge of Crystal Palace ended in a buoyant 3-0 victory over 10-man Burnley at Selhurst Park.
The relegation-threatened hosts got off to a bright start and were on the front foot for the majority of the first half, but it remained goalless after the break despite Josh Brownhill’s 38th-minute sending–off.
Chris Richards broke the deadlock with his first Premier League goal, a 68th-minute header, before Jordan Ayew doubled the Eagles’ advantage four minutes later and Jean-Philippe Mateta’s spot-kick made the game safe.
Burnley had a late consolation chalked off, another blow on a disappointing end to an afternoon that saw Palace move eight points clear of the relegation zone.
Glasner, treated to a warm ovation when he was introduced to the crowd, had named an unchanged line-up from the Eagles’ 1-1 draw with Everton and employed the same 3-4-2-1 formation.
The Austrian had spoken of his goal-scoring ambitions for an Eagles side who, with 28 from 26 matches, had at kick-off only scored more than bottom side Sheffield United, the 17th-placed Toffees and Saturday’s opponents.
The visitors opened with what could have been a costly error, when Charlie Taylor’s pass back to his goalkeeper completely evaded James Trafford and went out for a Palace corner inside two minutes.
Glasner will have been encouraged by the fighting start from the hosts, who had few clear-cut chances but consistently found themselves on the front foot, the visitors seeing little of the ball until a brief spell around the 20-minute mark.
From then it was all Palace, Odsonne Edouard first seeing a chance deflected off Lorenz Assignon, then Trafford doing well to block Joachim Andersen’s close-range effort through a sea of bodies from the resulting corner and later going to ground to deny Edouard from nodding Adam Wharton’s cross past the post with an outstretched save.
Burnley were down to 10 men when Trafford’s weak pass allowed Jefferson Lerma to pounce and the under-pressure Brownhill responded by dragging the Palace midfielder down by the back of his shirt, earning an instant red from referee Lewis Smith.
Kompany instantly replaced Zeki Amdouni with Josh Cullen before Edouard skimmed the top of the crossbar with a free kick, and though Palace largely remained in control would have been frustrated the contest remained a stalemate at the break.
It was a similar story to start the second half, the hosts looking more likelier to break the deadlock but directing efforts narrowly off-target, while David Datro Fofana nodded a rare chance for Burnley wide.
Glasner made his first changes, swapping Wharton for Naouirou Ahamada and replacing Edouard with Matheus Franca, his side taking a deserved lead two minutes later when Richards nodded Ayew’s cross into the bottom corner.
Franca picked up his first Palace assist after a brief pause, slipping a fine pass for Ayew to turn in at the far post in the 72nd minute, the goal standing following a VAR check.
VAR was consulted a second time after Burnley substitute Vitinho got himself into trouble almost immediately after his 75th-minute introduction, brought down Franca inside the 18-yard box.
The penalty stood after the check and Mateta obligingly converted, sending Trafford the wrong way in the 79th minute.
Palace had conceded more goals in the final 15 minutes than any other side in the division, and nearly looked to have added to the unfortunate statistic when Fofana nodded past Sam Johnstone in the 88th minute.
Smith was called to the monitor and the hosts’ clean sheet restored – which they kept even after playing more than 13 minutes of added time.
Leverkusen have no time to soak in 'Neverlusen' season - Alonso
Xabi Alonso says it will take time for Bayer Leverkusen's undefeated run to their maiden Bundesliga to sink in.
Long derided as 'Neverkusen' for their failure to win a major title for decades, Leverkusen became the first-ever team in the Bundesliga to complete a full season without a loss following a 2-1 victory over Augsburg in the season finale on Saturday.
In fact, across the top five European leagues, only Arsenal (2003-04) and Juventus (2011-12) have achieved an invincible season since the start of the millenium.
The club hailed the achievement by giving themselves a new nickname on their social media channel - 'Bayer 04 Neverlusen'.
"It is an exceptional season, not only in Germany but in Europe," Alonso said in a press conference.
"We deserve now to be part of that history of European football. In 20 years, we will look back, and we will say 'we did that'.
"It is an important day for the club. We have to be proud of the way we played. 90 points and undefeated. We need a bit more time to value this title. The first Bundesliga title but a big Bundesliga title victory."
Alonso's team also stretched their European record unbeaten run across all competitions this season to 51 matches as they look to complete the treble next week.
Leverkusen face Atalanta on Wednesday in the Europa League final before taking on Kaiserslautern in the German Cup final on May 25.
"I believe it [the unbeaten title win], but I need more time. But we have no time because we have the next big goal [on Wednesday]. It is unique opportunity," Alonso added.
"We will remember this day. It is a special day to have the league trophy here and having done it undefeated. This team has now been engraved in Bundesliga history."
Forest 'still have to finish the job' against Burnley, says Nuno
Nuno Espirito Santo insists Nottingham Forest “still have to finish the job” of securing their Premier League safety when they face Burnley at Turf Moor.
Three points clear of 18th-place Luton Town in 17th, Forest are all but safe from relegation, while it would take an unlikely 12-goal swing in the Hatters’ favour to usurp them.
Nevertheless, Nuno is not taking anything for granted and has called for focus from his players, who he saluted for their efforts throughout the campaign.
"We still have to finish the job," he said. "But credit to the players because it was not an easy season. We have always been able to compete really well in games.
"The feeling is always that we should have been better. We have never felt that someone beat us; it was just that we let games get away from us.
"Yes, in certain games we have been punished, but we have always been a team that wants to attack and score. That is part of our identity.
"There is still a game to go, and we know how football can go. It is best that we prepare the same way with commitment. We are clear about everything that can happen. It is up to us to achieve what we want."
Meanwhile, Burnley are preparing for life back in the Championship, with their immediate return secured after last weekend’s defeat at Tottenham.
And Vincent Kompany says the match marks the first step towards the Clarets' recovery from their disappointment.
"If we're treating this as the first game of next season, in terms of preparing for next season, then this game is an important game," he said.
"You only really fail if you fail to learn and that's not the case for us. We've absolutely learned. There is no lack of motivation, no lack of desire.
"It's sometimes in human nature to sit down and sulk, to feel sorry for yourself. That is not in the culture here, it's not in my nature, the nature of many people here.
"We try to give that to the players – that's ultimately what is going to give them a chance to achieve their goals."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Burnley – Dara O'Shea
O'Shea has been directly involved in two of the last three goals Burnley have scored at Turf Moor (one goal, one assist).
The defender will look to build on that against a Forest side that has conceded 23 goals from set-pieces this season, with only three teams ever letting more in during a single Premier League campaign.
Nottingham Forest – Chris Wood
Wood is the highest scorer in Burnley’s Premier League history, having netted 49 times for the Clarets in the competition between 2017 and 2022.
The striker will aim to become the fifth player to score a Premier League goal against Burnley having previously played for them in the division, after Andre Gray, Danny Ings, Michael Keane and Patrick Bamford.
MATCH PREDICTION: DRAW
Forest are without a win in each of their last six league meetings with Burnley since a 2-0 victory in December 2012, with four of those ending in a draw.
The Tricky Trees have failed to win their final league game in each of the last four seasons, since beating Bolton Wanderers 1-0 in 2018-19.
Meanwhile, Burnley have lost their final Premier League game in each of their last six campaigns at this level.
The Clarets have also won only twice at home this season. Failure to win here would mean this is the fewest wins they have ever recorded in front of their fans in a single campaign.
Kompany’s side will need to tighten up in order to avoid that, though, having conceded at least once in each of their last 19 Premier League matches.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Burnley: 35.9%
Nottingham Forest: 34.8%
Draw: 29.3%
Tuchel bemoans lack of focus as Bayern slump to final-day defeat
Departing Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel was unhappy with his team's lack of focus following their 4-2 loss at Hoffenheim on Saturday.
Bayern threw away a two-goal lead, condemning them to a third-place finish behind unbeaten Bayern Leverkusen and Stuttgart
After failing to win the Bundesliga title for a 12th consecutive season, Tuchel's side will also go without domestic or European silverware for the first time in more than a decade.
"We started really well, but then we had a string of individual mistakes," Tuchel said in a short press conference.
The coach is leaving Bayern after just over a year in charge after the club announced his departure in February. There had been talks to potentially reverse that decision last week, but no agreement was reached.
"In the second half we played well for 15 minutes, but then it was again a series of individual mistakes and loss of possession," Tuchel said. "We gave away a two-goal lead for a completely unnecessary and bitter defeat."
Despite a string of injury absences, Bayern were 2-0 up by the sixth minute but Hoffenheim scored four times, including an Andrej Kramaric hat-trick in the second half to turn the game around.
"It happens far too often, like that. It happened in Stuttgart where we conceded two late goals [for a 3-1 defeat]. In Heidenheim, the same [for a 3-2 loss]. Here the same. It just happens too often," Tuchel added.
"I have an explanation for that, but it is not for the public."
Bayern's Aleksandar Pavlovic, who is part of Germany's preliminary Euro 2024 squad, went off injured early in the match and will undergo further tests.
"He twisted his ankle. We will have to wait and see what the checks show," Tuchel said.
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