Ismaila Sarr scored the only goal as Crystal Palace ended a nine-game winless run in the Premier League with a victory over rivals Brighton at the Amex Stadium.
The game had been drifting towards an insipid goalless draw until Sarr collected second-half substitute Evann Guessand’s pass and calmly lifted the ball over Bart Verbruggen to break the deadlock with Palace’s first shot on target.
Unsurprisingly, given both teams’ lack of form, the first half was largely devoid of quality or creativity, with Brighton full-back Maxim de Cuyper’s tame strike from the edge of the area the only effort on target from either side before the break.
Brighton captain Lewis Dunk posed a threat, lifting a header over the bar from a Pascal Gross corner before nodding wide from the German’s free-kick delivery 15 minutes later.
Oliver Glasner’s Palace improved towards the end of the first half, but Adam Wharton blazed wide from the edge of the area before Sarr sliced an effort off target when under pressure from Dunk.
Chances remained at a premium until just after the hour mark, when Sarr beat Verbruggen for his 10th goal of the season in all competitions.
