Ghanaian pair Jordan Ayew and Jeffrey Schlupp made significant contributions from the bench as Crystal Palace staged a remarkable 4-2 comeback victory against Plymouth Argyle.
In the second round of the 2023/24 EFL Cup held on Tuesday at Home Park, the Premier League side had to rally from a two-goal deficit to secure their win.
Plymouth Argyle gained an early advantage with a goal from New Zealand forward Ben Waine just 6 minutes into the match. This put Crystal Palace on the back foot as they headed into halftime trailing by a single goal.
The situation worsened for the Premier League club when Plymouth extended their lead to 2-0 shortly after the second half began, courtesy of Luke Cundle.
Responding to the mounting challenge, Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson brought in key players, including Jordan Ayew and Jeffrey Schlupp, ten minutes into the second half.
Jordan Ayew made an immediate impact, providing an assist to Edsonne Edouard in the 59th minute, narrowing the scoreline to 2-1. Not long after, Plymouth's Mateta scored to level the game at 2-2.
Continuing their resurgence, Mateta struck again just two minutes later, this time benefiting from an assist by Jeffrey Schlupp. This decisive goal propelled Crystal Palace to a 3-2 lead in the 62nd minute.
Completing an impressive hat trick, Mateta secured his third goal of the match in the 83rd minute, with assistance from Eze. This secured the final score of 4-2 in favor of Crystal Palace.
The victory propels Crystal Palace into the third round of the EFL Cup, marking a successful advance in the tournament.