Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson found positives from last night's Carabao Cup defeat to Bournemouth.
Nya Kirby was one of those, with the midfielder being handed his first-team debut on the right-hand side of midfield.
"He did quite well," Hodgson said. "He has waited a long time. And he's another one who hasn't really played any first-team football; I'm not certain he has ever appeared in a competitive match during my time. So another bonus."
Another huge positive for the Eagles was the return of Mamadou Sakho, with hopes now that the injury-hit 2019-20 season is now firmly behind him.
"Mamadou hasn't really played since Aston Villa. He had been out a long time before that and then got injured again, so he played very little football in the last season for us," Hodgson said to the club's website.
"He played 30 minutes tonight – well 45 minutes with the penalty shootout; he was on the pitch for a long time tonight after doing two training sessions, which is quite incredible.
"The medical staff were very reticent to let him play, they thought it was too soon and it wasn't a good idea. But I spoke to him, and he thought that as long as he wasn't thrown into the deep end, as it were, he could play a part in the game. He did and that's another bonus for me."
