He's a pro doing his job - of course Yohan Cabaye was right to take penalty against Newcastle

It was difficult to get a gauge on exactly how the match was going when watching on a dodgy stream in a crowded sports bar in the middle of Berlin, while desperately trying to hide my disappointment from the group of rowdy Geordies who were scaring away the locals with songs reminding everybody just how much they dislike Alan Pardew.

We started brightly but withered away in the second half and I’m sure Newcastle fans dislike Pardew just a tiny little bit less, having gifted them with a much needed win in their fight for survival, thanks in no small part to the incompetence of ex-magpie Yohan Cabaye.

Cabaye’s penalty has sparked plenty of debate about whether or not he should have taken it in the first place.

Isn’t hindsight a wonderful thing?

Obviously it was a terrible penalty. The strike was about as weak as the argument for awarding it in the first place.

But he’s never missed one for us before, he’s been our penalty taker all season and he’s our joint top scorer. Why wouldn’t he have taken it?

He’s a professional footballer who gets paid to do his job and the fact that he used to play for Newcastle is completely irrelevant.

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Nobody cared when Glenn Murray took a penalty against Brighton a few years ago and likewise there were no objections when former Watford player Kevin Phillips stepped up at Wembley.

The difference is those spot kicks were scored so there was no need for conspiracy theories to arise.

I know Stephen Hawking’s Nan could have probably taken a better penalty with her eyes shut but nobody is perfect.

Don’t worry Yohan, I still love you.

Things are never easy with Palace and considering where we were at Christmas, it almost seems ridiculous that with two games left of the season we’re still not mathematically safe.

If we can finally confirm safety with a point or three against Stoke, it will be such a welcome relief and we can start to focus on the cup final.

I think if there’s one thing that absolutely everybody can agree on, it’s that this year’s Premier League has been ridiculous.

With Leicester doing the unthinkable and defying all expectation, the big clubs failing to impress and Palace free falling from potential Champions League to potential Championship, everything about this season has been completely, astonishingly unpredictable.

Well, almost everything.

In the words of Benjamin Franklin: “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death, taxes and Stoke City achieving another dull, unspectacular mid-table finish.”

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Earlier in the season I accused Stoke of being a boring team with no ambition, who will only ever finish 10th.

Some of their fans weren’t happy and told me to check where they were in the league come May. Well it’s now May and Stoke are... 10th in the league. Nice job proving me wrong.

The only reason Mark Hughes still has his job is because Stoke are so characterless and bland that their chairman has probably just forgotten that they exist.

They promised so much after an ambitious summer transfer window, but failed to capitalise on their potential.

They are the Premier League equivalent of the Simpsons episode where Homer tells Bart and Lisa he’s taking them to Disneyland, when they’re actually going to the dentist.

They’re going to finish higher than us in the league but I’d take an exciting, nervous, nail-biting, survival on the last day of the season over a formulaic, repetitive mid-table finish every day of the week.