Crystal Palace edged out by Lyon despite Kamada’s late Europa League goal

Crystal Palace were beaten 3-2 by Lyon at the Groupama Stadium despite a late fightback that twice dragged them back into contention. Daichi Kamada struck in the 81st minute to cut the gap to one, but Lyon saw out the closing stages after Pavel Sulc’s 76th-minute goal had restored the home side’s two-goal cushion.

Palace had fallen behind inside eight minutes when Corentin Tolisso finished precisely, with Lyon’s 4-3-1-2 shape causing repeated problems for the visitors. The hosts’ midfield movement pulled Palace’s back three apart, and Ernest Nuamah added a second in first-half stoppage time after another defensive breakdown.

The Eagles changed the momentum after the interval. Adam Wharton threaded a pass through the Lyon midfield for Yeremy Pino, who finished in the 50th minute to give Palace a route back into the contest. Pino remained a danger between the lines before being booked in the 57th minute and withdrawn in the 75th.

Lyon absorbed the pressure and struck again when Sulc scored with 14 minutes left. Palace responded quickly through substitute Kamada, who found room in the area to make it 3-2 and set up a tense finish, but the home defence dropped deep and protected the lead.

Wharton was Palace’s key creative outlet, particularly after the break, while Kamada’s arrival in the 62nd minute improved the visitors’ attacking rhythm. Eddie Nketiah also entered at the same point for Larsen, offering more running beyond Lyon’s centre-backs, although he could not find an equaliser.

Palace’s defensive issues proved decisive. Chris Richards, operating on the right of the three-man defence, was caught in the transition that led to Lyon’s third and went off in the 83rd minute. Axel Disasi and the rest of the back line struggled to deal with Nuamah’s pace and Lyon’s central combinations, while the goalkeeper made one save as Lyon registered five efforts on target.

Tyrick Mitchell worked hard down the left but could not consistently deliver the final pass, while Ismaila Sarr endured a difficult outing in an unfamiliar wing-back role. Sarr was booked in the 36th minute and replaced after 62 minutes. Timber, Mingueza and the later introductions, including Osorio, were unable to force the breakthrough as Lyon closed down space late on.

Palace’s second-half response showed the impact of the bench and the quality of their attacking options, but the first-half defensive lapses left too much to recover. Their next task is to turn that improved attacking fluency into a more complete performance from the opening whistle.