In the sweltering September sun, Crystal Palace found themselves on the wrong end of a convincing and decisive 4-0 scoreline, against a well-drilled Spurs side.
Saturday’s punishing result will no doubt ruffle a few feathers in the Eagles’ management hierarchy as Palace’s shortcomings are unpicked. As frustrated Palace fans everywhere come to terms with such a gruelling defeat, here are three key conclusions surrounding Palace’s poor performance.
1. Sakho isn’t quite fit yet
Veteran Premier League centre-back Mamadou Sakho came back into the Palace starting XI after a prolonged absence, due to injury. Whilst the Frenchman normally serves as a bulwark at the back, the defender looks sluggish. Spurs found enticing opportunities to capitalise on this, with South Korean superstar Son Heung-Min leaving Sakho for dead after some spectacular footwork and clinical finishing.
Son’s opener was the most revealing moment of Sakho’s current weaknesses, with the defender failing to track back in time or press Son fully. This is no indictment of Mamadou’s usual quality; it merely looked as though Sakho was not quite fully fit.
Although the club physiotherapists must have cleared Mamadou to play, one can’t help but think that pre-match defensive injuries forced Roy’s hand into playing a slightly unfit centre-back.
2. This week’s player rotation didn’t work
Preceding this hefty defeat, Roy’s boys had been in good form. Two wins over Aston Villa and Manchester United saw a handful of goals and some solid defensive displays.
However, the re-introduction of Andros Townsend (the winger had been benched in the previous two wins) forced Roy to play a 4-4-2 formation, with Zaha playing out of position in a more central role. Although Palace talisman Zaha put in a superb amount of work, Palace’s attack looked fundamentally dull.
When Benteke came on to replace striker Jordan Ayew, Benteke failed to add any meaningful spark to a deflated side. He was virtually absent and was kept in line superbly by the Spurs defence. Once again, Palace appears sluggish and uninspired.
Conclusively, the match-winning tactics of previous games had been tweaked, if not somewhat abandoned, and this proved costly.
3. Spurs were simply more energised
Beyond a multitude of Palace blunders and shortcomings, Spurs appeared as though they needed a statement to be made. A couple of unconvincing wins and lucky draws is surely unbecoming of a team with vast depth and quality talents, such as Eriksen and Kane.
After the international break, Spurs looked rejuvenated; they were brimming with confidence and looked keen to impress. After an impressive run to the Champion’s League Final and a respectable 3rd-place finish last season, Spurs were looking to recover some good form that marked much of the preceding season.
All things considered, even a sharper Palace side would have struggled to break down a team that was unmistakably focused on a decisive victory. Sometimes in football, results are influenced by the past and by preconceptions of opponents. It is still elusive as to whether this can be applied to this week’s punishing fixture, though there is certainly a case that it could be.
