CHARLTON manager Alan Curbishley admits he has plenty of thinking to do before selecting his side for Saturday's home game against Middlesbrough.

Curbishley, deflated after Wednesday's Carling Cup 2-1 eclipse by a virtual Crystal Palace reserve side at The Valley, said: "It was all terribly disappointing and I have plenty of thinking to do before Saturday's match.

"In the end we played a lot of predictable stuff and Palace saw us off comfortably. I think their manager Iain Dowie put himself in a no lose situation by making all those changes because if they got beat, they got beat.

"If they won, they would all be heroes. We were up for the game and I expected us to go on and win after scoring so early but their players certainly revelled in playing before a big crowd.

"I was hoping that with two home games on the spin we would beat Palace and take it on into Saturday's match. Unforunately, it wasn't to be. I thought both their goals were avoidable."

Hermann Hreidarsson, playing against his old club, gave Charlton the tonic of a fifth minute lead when he rose unchallenged at the near post to head home Danny Murphy's corner.

Palace, who made 10 changes from the side that beat West Bromwich Albion on Saturday, equalised in the 40th minute when skipper Dougie Freedman curled a 20-yard drive wide of goalkeeper Dean Kiely.

Sandor Torghelle won the tie, and took Charlton's unbeaten home record in the process, when he was allowed to turn and shoot past Kiely in the 54th minute.

Torghelle's celebrations were cut short when he was dismissed in the 70th minute when referee Rob Styles dismissed him for diving. It was his second caution.

Attendance: 19,030.