Wilfried Zaha came off the bench for Crystal Palace as they played out a goalless stalemate with suitors Everton at Selhurst Park.
The visitors were reduced to 10 men following Morgan Schneiderlin's second-half dismissal but created the better chances to secure an opening-day victory - only for both sides to have to settle for a share of the spoils.
Palace manager Roy Hodgson said of Zaha, He handled it very well the crowd helped him. The crowd gave him a great reception, it was nice to have him available to give another dimension to our play.
He did well, he set us up for an incredible goal chance that could have won it for us at the end. I think he's a bit rusty there's no doubt about that. When the player comes back after three weeks away having a holiday after the African Cup of Nations he's going to need a little bit of time to find his true form. He's a phenomenal athlete when it comes to fitness he was fit enough to play in the game. To find the form he'll want to find, he'll need a week or two but it was good to give him the chance to come on and give him those minutes. And he almost helped us to the three points.
That fact is that the situation has been and gone, and I'm sure Wilf will make certain he brings his straw to the water and helps us have a good season, just like he has done in the last two seasons."
