Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
Dom Smith

Roy Hodgson needs Crystal Palace back on goal trail as he plots escape from relegation

12th in the table, but only four points off the bottom of the Premier League, Crystal Palace’s new boss Roy Hodgson knows his struggling side are fighting for their lives.

Palace’s destiny is in their own hands, with a series of ‘six-pointers’ to come against relegation rivals starting with Leicester’s visit to Selhurst Park on Saturday.

Games against Leeds, Southampton, Everton, Wolves, West Ham, Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest follow in the remaining 10 matches Palace have to save their season.

And it is up to Hodgson — coaxed out of retirement aged 75 — to turn the tide after the sacking of Patrick Vieira a fortnight ago.

Looking ahead to the visit of Leicester, Hodgson has demanded energy, enthusiasm, optimism and a lack of fear. But more than anything, as the division’s lowest scorers, Palace need goals.

Familiar face: Roy Hodgson is back at Crystal Palace, having initially been replaced in 2021 (PA)

The Eagles remain winless in 2023 heading into April, all six of their league victories coming before the turn of the year.

While draws with Manchester United and Liverpool offered temporary respite, Vieira ultimately failed to get the best of talents such as Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze — and an unkind run of fixtures from January to March proved his undoing.

The return of first-choice goalkeeper Vicente Guaita is a major boost. A goalkeeper crisis saw 19-year-old academy player Joe Whitworth drafted in for defeats by Brighton and Arsenal before the international break.

Further forward, talisman Wilfried Zaha is likely to leave in the summer but Hodgson will hope to have the Ivorian fit and firing for the run-in.

Zaha won two caps for Hodgson’s England before switching to play for Ivory Coast in 2017, and many of his most electric performances in a Palace shirt came when Hodgson was at the helm.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.