Crystal Palace head coach Patrick Vieira believes teams will have to make quick decisions on the ball when they face Leeds United. Vieira was speaking after the two sides’ pre-season friendly in Australia during the summer, where the game ended 1-1.
Leeds named a strong side for that outing back in July, with new signings Brenden Aaronson, Rasmus Kristensen, Tyler Adams and Luis Sinisterra all starting. Palace did play Leeds under Marsch in the Premier League last season, but with a number of new players in their side, the friendly was able to provide a much clearer indicator of what a team under the American would look like.
The game back in April at Selhurst Park was arguably one of Leeds’ poorest performances under Marsch, despite coming away with a 0-0 draw. However, after the pre-season meeting, Vieira stated that Marsch’s philosophy was evident, praising their ‘aggressive defending’ at the top end of the pitch.
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He said: “I think the philosophy of the manager (Marsch) is clear. Putting on high pressure and trying to win the ball in the opposition half. They play with a lot of intensity so we - and any other team that plays Leeds - will have to make quicker decisions because they are very aggressive defending on the front foot.
“I think the more the game grew today the better we were and the more tired they became, so I was really pleased overall with the quality of the game.”
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