Zian Flemming's 90th-Minute Winner Gives Ipswich Town a 3-2 Comeback at Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace led this game, then played more than 50 minutes with ten men, and still nearly escaped with a point — before Ipswich Town found a winner in the last minute of normal time. A five-goal thriller at Selhurst Park ended 3-2 to the visitors, sealed by a substitute who had not even started the move.

Palace ahead, then reduced to ten men

Anan Khalaili gave Palace a 14th-minute lead with a sweet strike from the edge of the box that took a deflection off Leif Davis on its way in. Ipswich were level nine minutes later, Emersonn heading in from a Davis cross, and the game turned again just after the half-hour: Axel Disasi was sent off for catching Jack Clarke on the shin with his studs, leaving Palace to play the rest of the match a man down. Davis himself put Ipswich ahead right on half-time, heading in after Palace failed to deal with a set piece.

An equaliser, then a late sting

Palace, down to ten men since before the break, still found a way back. Jorgen Strand Larsen held off his marker and fired into the bottom-left corner in the 75th minute to make it 2-2, and for a while it looked like Pierre Sage's side might hold on for a point that would have owed everything to resilience. Ipswich had other ideas. A looping header from Davis came back off the crossbar in the 90th minute, and substitute Zian Flemming reacted quickest, tucking away the rebound for the winner.

"We are really frustrated because of the context of the game. We were ahead before conceding the 1-1 goal from their first opportunity, and the red card forced me to reorganise."

— Pierre Sage, Crystal Palace head coach

"Winning away in the Premier League is tough, but I'm pleased. We found a way to win, we deserved to win as well, which is important."

— Gary O'Neil, Ipswich Town head coach

The final quarter-hour

1. 75' — Jorgen Strand Larsen holds off his marker and finishes into the bottom-left corner: 2-2.
2. Palace push for a winner of their own as the game opens up with both sides chasing it.
3. 90' — Leif Davis's looping header comes back off the crossbar.
4. Zian Flemming, on as a substitute, reacts first to the rebound and tucks it in: 2-3.
5. Palace, still down to ten men, cannot find a way back in the minutes that follow.

A 25-year wait, ended

The win ended a run stretching back to December 2001 in which Ipswich had never won a Premier League match after conceding first — 32 matches without doing it, before Flemming's goal finally broke the streak. It was also their first away win in the competition since April 2025.

Both clubs were level on points

Crystal Palace and Ipswich Town had gone into the weekend level on three points from three matches, 13th and 14th respectively, both with one win and two losses. The result flips that: Ipswich move to six points with their second win of the season, while Palace stay on three points, now with a goal difference of -5 after conceding 11 goals in four matches. It means Sage has now lost both of his home league games in charge — this one and the 1-4 hammering by Manchester City — sandwiched around an away win at Fulham that had briefly lifted the mood at Selhurst Park, and the opening loss at Everton before that.