Crystal Palace 1-3 Arsenal: Gabriel Martinelli and Nicolas Pepe score late on

Arsenal scored twice in injury time to stun Crystal Palace and mean Roy Hodgson's last home game in charge of the Eagles ended in disappointment.

But his farewell match at Selhurst Park ended in a last-gasp defeat as Gabriel Martinelli latched onto fellow substitute Martin Odegaard's cross to convert from close range on 91 minutes before Nicolas Pepe coolly rolled in Arsenal's third four minutes later.

Christian Benteke's diving header from Andros Townsend's free-kick levelled for the home side after Pepe had volleyed in to finish off a neat Arsenal move.

Palace can move up a place to 12th on the final day if they better Wolves' result against Manchester United, while Arsenal kept alive their hopes of a top-six finish.

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'It has been a magnificent four years'

Much-travelled boss Hodgson is the oldest man to have managed in the Premier League and said on the eve of the game it was the "right time to step away" from the rigours of the top flight.

Since taking over in September 2017, he has further stabilised Palace as a top-flight side, steering them clear of the relegation zone with 11th, 12th and 14th-placed finishes.

The former England manager was applauded onto the pitch by the 6,500 Palace fans who made their return to the stadium, while Hodgson received a guard of honour from both sets of players and staff.

His farewell looked to be heading for a satisfactory conclusion when Benteke stooped to head home for his 10th goal of the campaign but the visitors late rally spoiled the mood.

Addressing the crowd at full-time and with the players watching on from the sidelines, Hodgson said: "It has been a magnificent four years of my career and I enjoyed every moment. We would have liked to have finished the season here with a good result against a top team."

He perhaps also hinted at retirement from management by adding: "I shall miss everybody, I shall miss football but it has been a fantastic journey and I thank you very much."

Lifeline for Arsenal

Up until the 90th minute, Mikel Arteta's side had been largely poor and it looked as if a fairly miserable season was petering out without much incident.

The Gunners have lost a club record-equalling 13 games in a 38-game season but Martinelli and Pepe's goals gave their side a lifeline in the quest for European football next season.

Despite failing to offer significant attacking threat for much of the contest, they ended up scoring with all three of their shots on target.

On-loan Odegaard started the game on the bench and his future in doubt but the Real Madrid man proved his effectiveness with a delightful cross which Martinelli converted.

Arsenal's excellent late-season form has seen them collect their fourth straight league win for the first time since 2018 and they will go into Sunday's match against Brighton full of optimism.

Player of the match

Gabriel MartinelliGabriel Martinelli

with an average of 7.45

• Crystal PalaceCrystal PalaceCrystal Palace
• ArsenalArsenalArsenal

Crystal Palace

Avg

1. Squad number20Player nameBenteke

   Average rating

   6.53
2. Squad number10Player nameTownsend

   Average rating

   6.03
3. Squad number11Player nameZaha

   Average rating

   5.99
4. Squad number9Player nameJ Ayew

   Average rating

   5.79
5. Squad number24Player nameCahill

   Average rating

   5.78
6. Squad number27Player nameMitchell

   Average rating

   5.76
7. Squad number8Player nameKouyaté

   Average rating

   5.73
8. Squad number44Player nameRiedewald

   Average rating

   5.71
9. Squad number31Player nameGuaita

   Average rating

   5.70
10. Squad number5Player nameTomkins

    Average rating

    5.62
11. Squad number22Player nameMcCarthy

    Average rating

    5.60
12. Squad number15Player nameSchlupp

    Average rating

    5.59
13. Squad number2Player nameWard

    Average rating

    5.53

Arsenal

Avg

1. Squad number35Player nameGabriel Martinelli

   Average rating

   7.45
2. Squad number3Player nameTierney

   Average rating

   7.25
3. Squad number19Player namePépé

   Average rating

   7.03
4. Squad number32Player nameSmith Rowe

   Average rating

   6.71
5. Squad number7Player nameSaka

   Average rating

   6.60
6. Squad number6Player nameGabriel Magalhães

   Average rating

   6.13
7. Squad number21Player nameChambers

   Average rating

   6.05
8. Squad number11Player nameØdegaard

   Average rating

   6.04
9. Squad number16Player nameHolding

   Average rating

   6.03
10. Squad number1Player nameLeno

    Average rating

    5.94
11. Squad number18Player namePartey

    Average rating

    5.88
12. Squad number25Player nameMohamed Elneny

    Average rating

    5.86
13. Squad number14Player nameAubameyang

    Average rating

    5.58
14. Squad number34Player nameXhaka

    Average rating

    5.47

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