Classic Encounter: Last-Gasp Hayles Seals Palace Success
The Foxes, who defeated the Eagles at Selhurst Park in November, courtesy of goals from Çağlar Söyüncü and Jamie Vardy, have competed in several dramatic encounters with the London side.
Ahead of gameweek 33 in the Premier League, LCFC.com looks back to one of those previous clashes with Palace, which was a rare highlight of an otherwise disappointing 2007/08 season...
Leicester City 1 Crystal Palace 0
Monday 28 January, 2008
Championship
King Power Stadium
The Foxes made it seven points from a possible nine in early January 2008 with a last-gasp 1-0 home success over Crystal Palace with Barry Hayles on the scoresheet in the 89th minute.
Ian Holloway's Leicester, who'd previously beaten Coventry City on Filbert Way before a goalless draw away at Norwich City, seemed to be pulling away from the Championship's relegation zone.
That trend continued, eventually, against the Eagles, but they had to wait for their seventh league victory of the 2007/08, with Steve Howard missing several chances earlier on.
With seconds remaining, Richard Stearman's cross missed DJ Campbell, but fell to Hayles, whose first touch clipped up into the air, before falling back down and allowing him to bundle it into the net.
It was exactly the stroke of luck the Foxes needed in their battle to avoid falling to the third tier of English football, a battle they would ultimately lose on the final day of the season at Stoke City.
"We kept going until the end and concentrated hard and, although we got a fortunate goal, I felt we deserved it," Holloway, City's third full-time manager of that season, said at full-time.
"It was a scrappy old night and we new it would be difficult, Palace are a decent team. You can throw a very small handkerchief over this division and anyone can beat anyone."
City: Alnwick, Stearman (N'Gotty 62'), Kisnorbo, McAuley, Mattock, Hume (Campbell 76'), Clemence, Oakley, Laczkó (Bori 77'), Howard, Hayles
Subs Not Used: Fryatt, Wesolowski
Goals: Hayles 89'
Attendance: 21,764
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