LONDON — Burnley returned to winning ways in style after a quick start proved key to beating Crystal Palace 3-0 in the English Premier League on Saturday.
Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Jay Rodriguez netted inside 10 minutes at Selhurst Park and Matt Lowton added a brilliant third two minutes after the break to end a four-match winless run for Sean Dyche’s team.
Burnley’s day ended on a sour note, though, when captain Bee Mee left the field on a stretcher after an innocuous collision with Jordan Ayew.
The center back was put in a neck brace following a five-minute delay although he was later seen up and walking.
Burnley moved 11 points clear of the relegation zone but Palace’s woes without talisman Wilfried Zaha continued. In his absence, Palace has lost 18 of its last 20 top-flight games and the latest spoiled Roy Hodgson’s 350th Premier League game in management.
Without its top goalscorer due to a hamstring injury, Palace started Christian Benteke and Michy Batshuayi together up front for only the second time this season. But for a third consecutive game the hosts conceded early.
It was largely down to their own doing too with Scott Dann and Patrick Van Aanholt failing to clear Erik Pieters’ cross from deep and Gudmundsson teed himself up before he fired into the corner after five minutes.
Burnley doubled its advantage five minutes later. Dwight McNeil’s inswinging corner was not dealt with by home goalkeeper Vicente Guaita and Rodriguez had the easy task of heading home.
With the deficit at the break still two goals, Hodgson’s men had to start strongly after halftime but the opposite happened.
Full back Lowton had not scored in the Premier League since April 2013 and he became the most recent player to break a duck at Selhurst Park.
The defender produced a marauding run on the right, dribbling past several Palace players before playing a one-two with Rodriguez on the edge of the area and volleying it home.
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