Crystal Palace boss Alan Pardew has revealed his Christmas plans for his squad ahead of the trip to Bournemouth.
There will not be a hard training session for his players on Friday and the players’ friends and family have been invited to watch training in Beckenham, should they wish to attend.
The players and staff will then head down to the south coast in the evening once the squad have had some family time.
Speaking to Eagles TV’s Chris Grierson, Pardew said:
I always let the families come in and if they want to bring their grandchildren or uncle or whoever, they can come in and watch training.We will literally come in and have a five-a-side in the morning, go over a couple of little bits – nothing is too serious because no one concentrates on Christmas Day anyway. Then the players will go home for Christmas lunch with their families and then we’ll all meet to travel to Bournemouth.
Pardew also revealed that a lot of preparation over this period, thanks to the close proximity of games, is far more ‘classroom’ based rather than physical.
It’s more classroom based with tactics and training, so instead of replicating stuff on the pitch and using up energy, we’ll do it in the classroom. It’s not the best way – it’s the only way though to keep the physical levels where they should be.
The Eagles face Swansea City at Selhurst Park on Monday 28th – their second game in 48 hours – as they look to continue their impressive league form.
