Super-sub Yannick Bolasie marked his return to the Palace first team by setting up the equalising goal.

Bolasie had only been on the pitch for three minutes before whipping in a cross to set-up Fraizer Campbell for the equaliser.

After playing a vital part in Equatorial Guinea's third place finish at the African Nations Cup which saw Bolasie named in the team of the tournament, he now feels that the experience has helped him to grow as a player.

He said: "I could not have imagined anything better.

"It was a big achievement for my country and me, so I'm glad I ended up with a bronze medal.

"The game against Congo was a very emotional occasion, everyone started panicking when we went 2-0 down but to come back and win 4-2 was great.

"I experienced a lot of stuff and also dealing with the pressure of playing for my country.

"Obviously there is pressure playing for Palace in the Premier League but I think I know how to cope with things better."

Bolasie revealed that he had only come back from the African Nations Cup the day before the game but was told by boss Alan Pardew to be ready.

Although he wasn't deemed fit enough to start the game, Bolasie's impact from the bench lifted the whole team and he revealed that he was pleased with his performance.

Bolasie said: "That's the kind of impact I'm looking to do throughout the entire season.

"It's not about beating players all the time, I am trying to rack up assists and get a couple more goals too."

"I will try and get through this period because you only live once.

"I'm just trying to ease myself back into it and see what happens.

"We could have won it against Newcastle, they hit us when we were not expecting it but we came back into the game and had a couple of chances to win it."

Despite being on the other side of the globe, Bolasie kept in touch with how The Eagles were performing and was pleased with what he saw.

He said: "I did not get to see any of the games live but from what I saw we've looked good.

"We were flying at the time so that was good to see. It's been good for the club, we've been on a winning run and competition for places is healthy."

Looking forward to the F.A Cup game against Liverpool on Saturday, Bolasie brought up Palace's great record against The Reds and was looking forward to the game.

He said: "I'd like to think Liverpool don't like coming here, every game is a different game and we're looking forward to it.

"The FA Cup is something we have got to take seriously, it would be nice to get to Wembley and that would be great for the fans."