Crystal Palace striker Jørgen Strand Larsen put in a man of the match display in Palace’s 3-0 win against Middlesbrough in the third round of the Carabao Cup. The Norwegian scored a brace and assisted Daichi Kamada’s strike in an almost perfect display. 

With Jean-Philippe Mateta out injured, Strand Larsen is battling with Nketiah for the starting shirt, and this display, along with his second half performance in the 3-2 win against Fulham, will put him in a great position to lead the line at Selhurst Park against Ipswich Town this weekend. 

Whilst the result for Palace was hugely positive, Strand Larsen did admit that the performance of his team was still not where they wanted it to be. 

“The result especially, I think first half wasn’t great but we expected this with a whole new team playing together, a lot of new players, it will take us time to get into rhythm, to get to know each other, but second half we did really well, took our chances and [I’m] obviously buzzing with some goals because it’s what I need to be doing. I feel really good at this moment, I feel I've been playing well so just gotta keep doing that.”

Whilst he didn’t score in the win at Fulham, his holdup play was a huge part of Palace turning the game around, and the outlet that he provides for Sage’s side, especially when the defenders are looking to break the lines with forward passes, is invaluable. 

The three goals were all excellently worked moves, but the delivery from both Óscar Mingueza and Daichi Kamada for each of Strand Larsen’s headed finishes were sublime, and the striker was keen to recognise that quality. 

“I’ve got a lot of the [crosses] so more of that please! We’re talking about it everyday how to get into good positions and especially for us, the defenders want to grab us all the time because we’re big and a threat in the box so it's about being smart and I felt I got myself into two good positions and obvs delivery is great, Oscar knows me really well from out time in Celta so he knew that ball, and me and Chilly have known each other for a week but great to get some good crosses in and be on the end of it, should of had one more assist but Will [Hughes] didn’t carry it. 

Strand Larsen took both goals exceptionally, and showed great movement as well as instinctive finishing. 

The reality is that if you provide him with that service consistently, he will score a hatful of goals. 

His role in the build up play was also excellent all evening, and played a pivotal role in Daichi Kamada’s sublime looping strike, but after playing the ball through, he pumped his fist as if he knew what was coming next.

“I felt like he was going to score [When Daichi was played through], but then I didn’t know what he was doing, it looked like he was going to time waste in minute 70, but then he pulled something out of the hat, i think he knew that was his last option but Daichi’s quality, top player, and it’s good to get some confidence in the team, because I think we started tough, a bit unlucky maybe, not playing perfectly but a good win at the weekend, really enjoyed that, and a good win tonight, and then we just got to build on that and win on Saturday too.”

The element of rotation is something that not only Pierre Sage considers, but also the players too. Strand Larsen spoke about the feeling within the squad and how progressing in cup competitions can give others a chance to play and settle in. 

“I think we’ve got a lot of players this season, we want to be in every competition and compete so for everyone that's just positive that we keep on winning in every competition to keep the group happy and hopefully win another trophy this year, that’s what we aim for.”

Whilst Nketiah certainly brings talent to the side, it feels as though it’s Strand Larsen’s position to lose.