Palace ease past Shelbourne to boost top-eight hopes | OneFootball

Crystal Palace secured a comfortable 3-0 win over Shelbourne in Dublin, keeping their hopes of a top-eight finish in the UEFA Conference League alive.

The breakthrough came early, just 11 minutes in, as Christantus Uche, making his first start for the club, finished neatly from Eddie Nketiah’s square pass.

Palace continued to dominate, with Adam Wharton testing the keeper from range while Shelbourne offered little in response.

Their second goal arrived on 25 minutes, with Yeremy Pino’s through ball finding Uche, whose effort hit the post before Nketiah tapped in.

The highlight of the first half came in the 37th minute when Pino carried the ball from near halfway, shrugged off two defenders, and drilled a low finish past Wessel Speel to make it 3-0.

Palace controlled the game throughout the second half. Substitutes had chances, including Romain Esse’s shot which hit both posts, but the scoreline stayed the same.

A minor setback came when Justin Devenny went off injured, allowing 17-year-old Benji Casey to make his senior debut.

For Shelbourne, the defeat confirmed a frustrating European campaign, leaving them without a goal and with just one point from four games. Palace, meanwhile, bounced back from their Strasbourg loss with their third consecutive win in all competitions and remain in strong contention for a top-eight finish.