Odsonne Edouard double sees Crystal Palace beat Watford as new signing Jefferson Lerma debuts ahead of USA pre-season tour
- Odsonne Edouard scored twice as Crystal Palace beat Watford 2-1 in pre-season
- The Frenchman struck the net either side of an Edo Kayembe equaliser
- Jefferson Lerma made Eagles debut after joining from Bournemouth
Odsonne Edouard scored twice to gift Crystal Palace a 2-1 win over Watford in their fourth pre-season outing.
The Frenchman came off the bench in the second half to give Palace the lead at their training centre and found the net again after an Edo Kayembe equaliser.
Jefferson Lerma made his debut after joining from Bournemouth on a successful afternoon for the Eagles before they jet off to the United States, while Jake Livermore made his Watford bow after leaving West Brom.
Roy Hodgson’s men came into the match with a mixed summer record following a loss to Barnet, a draw with Brondby, and a 4-0 win over Crawley most recently.
Watford started the game better with three chances in the opening 15 minutes, with Imran Louza forcing an early save from Sam Johnstone.
Odsonne Edouard scored twice for the Eagles as they secured a victory against Championship Watford
Jefferson Lerma made his debut for Crystal Palace after joining earlier in the off-season
Roy Hodgson’s side are next in action against Millonarios in Chicago on July 27 as they jet off to USA
Johnstone then had his work cut out for him as the Hornets assaulted his goal from the corner flag, with Vakoun Bayo heading powerfully on target, prompting another save.
The first half didn’t see much more in the way of chances, but the introduction of Edouard injected new life into proceedings.
Jordan Ayew was the provider for his first, dispossessing Louza in midfield before threading Edouard in behind, allowing him to slot past Daniel Bachmann after 54 minutes.
Joachim Andersen nearly doubled the hosts’ advantage with a header minutes later, but he couldn’t convert Eberechi Eze’s cross as the ball went over the bar.
Parity was restored 68 minutes in when Kayembe cracked a shot from outside the box past Remi Matthews.
But Edouard had other ideas and bagged the winner with 15 minutes to go, neatly finishing into the corner from the edge of the area.
From there, Palace held on for their second pre-season victory. They face Millonarios in Chicago on July 27 in their next fixture.
