Mount's sweet strike earns rare United comeback win at Palace

Just when Ruben Amorim must have thought his luck would never turn, Manchester United managed to inflict Crystal Palace's first home defeat in the Premier League since February and end their own five-year wait for a victory at this ground after a first half when their opponents should have been out of sight.

- Ed Aarons

Oliver Glasner's side had been rampant and deservedly took the lead through Jean-Philippe Mateta's retaken penalty but they could not make their dominance count. Having failed to score in four previous league meetings that included three defeats, like the proverbial London buses United struck back twice in nine minutes through Joshua Zirkzee - his first goal in the Premier League for almost a year - and Mason Mount to snatch the points.

It was a frustrating afternoon at the end of a long week for Glasner, who has been linked with United in the past and saw Ismaïla Sarr limp off with an ankle injury before halftime that the Palace manager expects could keep the Senegal forward sidelined until the start of the Africa Cup of Nations. His Portuguese counterpart kept his emotions in check after the final whistle but Amorim must have been beaming inside after a much-improved performance that means United move above Palace into seventh.

"I said to the players that we needed to be more alive. We can't play like that in the Premier League," said the United manager of their awful first-half display. "We had the feeling that if we score one goal, it's going to change completely."