For a moment, Dean Henderson looked to have made up his mind. A step forward to meet the ball and the decision was made. But then he hesitated, stepped back and rooted himself to the spot.
Morgan Gibbs-White’s chipped pass over the defence found Chris Wood and the Nottingham Forest striker deftly looped a header over Henderson and into the goal to deny Crystal Palace victory.
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Saturday was the start of Henderson’s second chance to prove himself capable of being the first-choice goalkeeper at Palace, after a run of eight games in goal following an injury to Sam Johnstone earlier in the season.
But that moment of indecision proved costly for his team. Few would have complained had he committed to either coming for the ball or staying on his line, but being stuck between the two hindered his chances of keeping Wood’s effort out. The cross and the header were both excellent, but the goal could potentially have been prevented if Henderson had taken a decision either way.
There was little else to challenge him against Forest. A handful of punches under pressure from crosses or corners were the only real standout moments, with several shots palmed away that were already close to him and didn’t require much application.
He did what he needed to do, outside of that apparent mistake. But there is much greater expectation on him than there has been on Johnstone. His profile is higher, his fee was significantly higher (an initial £15million from Manchester United, with a further £5m in potential add-ons) and he is the club’s highest earner.
An excellent four months on loan at newly-promoted Forest at the start of 2022-23, before a season-ending injury in the January, increased his stock and persuaded Palace to lay out their highest fee of the summer window on a player who could be either a long-term project or someone to flip for a profit in due course.
The latter looks a remote prospect for now, particularly with Johnstone’s elbow injury having ruled him out for around four months. But there was support at the final whistle among the travelling contingent at the City Ground on Saturday, with shouts of “Deano! Deano!” from one section.
The 27-year-old has had a tough time since joining Palace but he has the support of their new manager Oliver Glasner and those chants will surely have proved comforting, even for someone who has never lacked confidence.
He had to wait after that summer move to be handed a chance, only to pick up an injury on his debut against previous employers United in late September. In his run of games after returning in December from that thigh problem, he struggled to make a case to start regularly over Johnstone and Palace’s then manager Roy Hodgson reinstated his rival before his departure.
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Glasner talked to his two goalkeepers following his late February appointment and told them that, although Johnstone would keep the No 1 spot, it was not a guarantee. Henderson, Glasner said, showed that he was ready to step up if required and “he has our full trust”.
Henderson is used to being appreciated. At Forest and previously at Sheffield United, where he spent 2018-19 and 2019-20 on loan, his performances catapulted him into the England squad, and he was adored by both sets of supporters. At Palace, he has had little opportunity to establish that relationship with the fans and there is, online at least, a contingent who have been strongly critical.
His manager, though, gave his backing on Saturday. “Brilliant,” was Glasner’s assessment of the performance. “There were several corners and free kicks and a lot of headers in the six-yard box. He came with his hands and cleared every ball in a difficult situation with a lot of tall players.
“The ball was delivered from Gibbs-White and also the run (by Wood was good). When you concede a goal you find three or four mistakes, but I don’t think it was a mistake from him. The delivery was very low and just over the head of Joa (centre-back Joachim Andersen). It was a good header from Wood.”
Henderson will know there is no pressure on him from Johnstone, for now; Remi Matthews is a third-choice to provide cover in case of injuries and to act effectively as a training goalkeeper, having turned 30 recently but only played a handful of Premier League minutes.
There will be ample opportunity in the final nine games for him to prove he is worthy of being installed as their No 1 ’keeper next season, particularly given the difficulty of Palace’s run-in, which includes six of the top eight sides. He is likely to be tested in those games.
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Johnstone has proven himself more dependable overall. Henderson, though, has had far fewer opportunities, and it will take time to gain that familiarity. But given his profile, that is a luxury that cannot be afforded. He is expected to come in and perform immediately.
The expectation is higher because of his fee and his wages, but that type of pressure is unlikely to unduly concern Henderson.
He is yet to show the level of performance that helped persuade Palace to sign him and while he handled well in awkward situations against Forest at the weekend, sterner tests are still to come.
With Johnstone out of the picture until next season and that challenging run-in, this is a huge opportunity for Henderson.
Given Glasner’s comments, this was a promising start.
(Top photo: Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images)
