Anelka deepens Palace gloom

The Frenchman's superb left-footed finish and a dubious penalty sealed the win which Keegan admitted afterwards meant "a stay of execution" for him.

With the clock running down Andy Johnson pulled a goal back from the penalty spot after substitute Nicola Ventola was brought down, but the late barrage never arrived and City deserved the three points.

Iain Dowie's side are now three points behind their nearest rivals after five straight defeats and most of the season-high 25,052 Selhurst gate must be wondering where the points for survival will come from.

Assistant manager Kit Symons said afterwards: "We knew it was going to be difficult and we're under no illusions. We're getting punished at the minute and need to turn the corner."

Palace were unbeaten against City in four Premiership clashes and looked capable of continuing that run in the opening period.

The midfield looked far more solid, with Fitz Hall restored to his natural defensive role in place of Tony Popovic, Michael Hughes recalled to the central role as captain, and Shaun Derry in for Joonas Kolkka on the left.

After a good break by Hughes was cynically halted by Sylvain Distin, a wonderful Wayne Routledge run almost put Johnson through on four minutes but Danny Mills made a crucial interception It was a tense encounter, but on 19 minutes Palace should have taken the lead. A deflected Routledge cross from the right rolled across the six-yard box where Sandor Torghelle was totally unmarked. A connection of any sort would have tested David James, but the big Hungarian's air shot set the tone for a poor personal performance.

The scare shook City and as the half came to a close, their superior quality started to shine through.

Antoine Sibierski should have scored when Anelka waltzed past Granville and cutback to the penalty spot, but Sibierski's shot hit Jon Macken and rolled wide. Macken almost made amends moments later with a neat turn but fired over from close range, and Claudio Reyna followed suit when Mills put him clear seconds before the break.

City cranked up the pressure after the break and Sibierski saw a goalbound header cleared off the line by Aki Riihilahti before Anelka finally broke the deadlock with the game's outstanding moment of quality.

He picked up the loose ball, cut inside then out onto his left foot, before rifling the ball past Julian Speroni into the far corner.

It should have been two when Macken ran clear from a seemingly offside position, but he selfishly shot into the side netting when Anelka was unmarked square and begging for the simplest of tap-ins.

The Incredible Sulk's familiar repost soon changed however when Shaun Wright-Phillips burst into the box and tumbled under Granville's shoulder charge. The challenge looked legitimate but novice referee Martin Atkinson, taking charge of his first top-flight game, let his linesman make a dubious decision.

Anelka hammered the penalty to Speroni's right and City were cruising.

Dowie had brought on Ventola and Kolkka for Torghelle and Derry with half an hour to go and with nothing to lose, Palace finally sprang to life.

Ventola proved a real handful and should have had a penalty when Mills climbed all over him to reach Riihilahti's cross. Minutes later he arrived at the back post to meet Kolkka's fine cross but mistimed his leap and headed wide.

Palace pulled a goal back when Ventola's run took him to the edge of the box where Joey Barton and Distin combined to bring him down. It looked outside the box, but again the referee let his linesman stick his neck out. Johnson made amends for his miss against Portsmouth with a fine strike to James' left.

Palace kept battling but lacked the quality or confidence to deliver a telling final ball and City held on for three well-deserved points.

MATCH STATS
PALACE STAR MAN: Michael Hughes
A superb first half showed Dowie what he had been missing. Comfortable on the ball and tenacious without, Palace's leader rattled City early on.

PALACE: Speroni 6, Boyce 7, Hudson 6, Hall 7, Granville 5, Routledge 5, Riihilahti 6 (Watson 70 ), Hughes 7, Derry (Ventola 60 7), Torghelle 5 (Kolkka 60 6), Johnson 6.

Not Used: Powell, Kiraly.

Booked: Hall, Hughes.