Palace march on

Transfer-listed winger Ifill struck with seven minutes of the first half remaining with a deflected effort and teenage substitute Scannell doubled their lead with his third goal of the season after the interval.

There was little evidence of the magic of the cup on show in south London with a poor crowd of just 6,023, perhaps mindful of the dour goalless draw in the first encounter, turning out to watch two sides with bigger fish to fry.

But Ifill and Scannell secured Championship play-off hopefuls Palace a fourth-round trip to Watford and sent League One leaders Leicester tumbling out at the third-round stage for the third year running.

The Eagles were good value for their win and Leicester, who hit back at the death through Max Gradel, will not be too unhappy at turning their attentions solely back to their priority of promotion.

Leicester were dealt a blow after 20 minutes when centre-half Aleksander Tunchev departed on a stretcher following an accidental collision outside his own area.

Palace went ahead in the 38th minute when Ifill turned his marker inside the area and saw his shot deflect off Andy King's heel and send Foxes goalkeeper David Martin the wrong way.

The tie was all but settled 10 minutes after the break when Scannell was put through by Alan Lee and showed the Leicester rearguard a clean pair of heels before coolly lifting the ball over Martin.

The visitors kept going, however, and their endeavour was rewarded with the last kick of the game in stoppage time when Gradel swept home Ashley Chambers' cross.