Sixty-eighth minute. Gnabry fouled twenty-five yards out. Bray's routine FK-12. Townsend stood over the ball deliberate misdirection.
Every team in the league had scouted Neves as our set-piece taker. The wall jumped. The ball went under, a low, driven technique Bray had drilled with Townsend for two weeks. It bounced once and hit the bottom corner. Butland was still in the air.
4–1. Crystal Palace. Townsend. 68 minutes.
[GOAL. Townsend. Free kick FK-12. Conversion rate for under-the-wall free kicks in the PL: 2.1%. Townsend's accuracy in training: 7 from 10. Competitive advantage: SIGNIFICANT.]
Townsend slid on his knees to the corner flag. The crowd behind the goal were delirious, reaching over the hoardings, scarves whipping in circles.
