Last night, Luke Plange earned Derby a significant three points as he scored in a 2-1 win over Fulham, ruining their promotion party in the process.
The 19-year-old, who signed for Crystal Palace in a £1m January deal, was superb throughout, and Patrick Vieira will surely be delighted with his display.
What’s the story?
Well, the Eagles managed to snap up the exciting prospect for a cut-price fee in January, due to Derby’s financial issues.
If Plange continues to deliver performances like this, then the £1m sum will look like a bargain.
As WhoScored shows, the teenager – who won the Man of the Match award – actually had a bit of a quiet display as he only touched the ball 24 times, but he made them count.
Plange showed great positioning to poke home Lee Buchanan’s cross in the 51st minute, and again in the 73rd minute when he forced Tosin Adarabioyo into scoring an own goal.
After full-time, Wayne Rooney admitted that the youngster has been working on getting into the middle of the goal more often, which is where both strikes came from.
As quoted by Derby’s official website, Rooney said: “I am delighted for Luke to get back on the scoresheet. We’ve been working a lot on him staying in the middle of the goal and you have to trust that your team-mates will get the ball to you. Thankfully he got his goal tonight and he had a big part in the second goal as well, so I’m pleased for him.”
Crystal Palace have a gem in Luke Plange
So far this season, Plange has scored four goals in 22 Championship appearances, which is decent for a player who only made his Championship debut in December.
The south Londoners have made a habit of plucking the best gems from England’s second tier, such as Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze.
Now, they have signed one who is yet to truly explode in the Championship, but looks more than capable of becoming a top striker.
With the likes of Wilfried Zaha, Eze, Olise and Odsonne Edouard supplying him, Plange will surely get a few goals for the Eagles next season.
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