Gayle scores twice as Palace beat Stoke

Britain Soccer Football - Crystal Palace v Stoke City - Barclays Premier League - Selhurst Park - 7/5/16 Dwight Gayle celebrates after scoring the second goal for Crystal Palace Reuters / Stefan Wermuth Livepic

Dwight Gayle scored twice as Crystal Palace came from behind to beat Stoke City 2-1 in an entertaining game at Selhurst Park on Saturday to confirm their Premier League safety.

The win takes FA Cup finalists Palace up to 14th on 42points, eight clear of 18th-placed Newcastle United with one game to play, while Stoke are 10th on 48, having now gone six league games without a win.

Gayle secured Palace's second win in 20 league games with a magnificent 68th-minute free kick, curling the ball beyond Jakob Haugaard from 25 metres after Ryan Shawcross had brought down Connor Wickham.

The visitors had taken the lead in the 26th minute when Charlie Adam finished off a fine team move but Gayle levelled for Palace in their final home game of the season after being picked out by the dazzling Yannick Bolasie two minutes into the second half.

(Reporting by Ed Dove; editing by Clare Fallon)