Alan Pardew has insisted that it would have been a 'cruel blow' had his side not scored in their eventual 1-1 draw with Bournemouth at Selhurst Park, even claiming that their second-half performance was "as good a half as we've played since I've been here."
The Eagles were second-best in the first half, conceding a half-volley by Josh King in the tenth minute of the game, but threw everything at their visitors in the second period and gained an equaliser through Scott Dann.
GOAL! Crystal Palace 1-1 Bournemouth (Dann) Live updates in our
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"We created a lot of unbelievable moments," saidPardew of the second half. "We played in the kind of vision that I'm hoping that we can play, and we got a justified equaliser."
The Palace boss had to admit that "the first half was very different, of course. We didn't have a lot of time for team play this week, and it showed. If the fans had gone home at half time, I couldn't have blamed them, to be honest."
"We lost confidence, especially after the penalty miss, I thought. Sometimes you miss one and it takes you a step back, and Bournemouth took full advantage."
He did take the time to praise new goalkeeper Steve Mandanda for his save in a 'crucial moment' at the other end.
There have been many different opinions given over the £27m capture of Christian Benteke for the Eagles, and the importance of the player was highlighted by Pardew's decision to start him despite match-fitness worries.
"I think the signs are there. We had so many chances, I think on another day when he's fresh, he would've got one or two today. He's going to be a real handful for the opposition. I thought it was a promising debut.
"The pressure builds in this league, but we got what we deserved today, no more no less. We'll take that."