Crystal PalaceSport

‘We became weaker’ – Roy Hodgson slams impact from substitutes in Crystal Palace’s defeat against Spurs

Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson has slammed the impact of the youngsters he substituted on during their 2-1 defeat at home to Tottenham Hotspur on Friday evening.

Jesurun Rak-Sakyi was introduced when the Eagles were 1-0 down, replacing Jeffrey Schlupp in the 60th minute. 

Matheus Franca, 19, who was playing his second Premier League match since signing from Flamengo in the summer, came on in the 79th minute for Jefferson Lerma.

Naouirou Ahamada – yet to make a Premier League start for the Eagles – also came on in the 70th minute for Will Hughes.

Jordan Ayew scored in second-half added time, but the South Londoners were unable to stop their second Premier League defeat in a row,

When asked about the disappointment he felt after the 4-0 defeat at Newcastle, and whether he had a different feeling following the loss to Spurs, Hodgson said: “If the game had ended with us continuing as we had done in the first half and continued giving the same performance and coming away with a result in the game or even a draw, I would be sitting here really pleased with with what I had seen.

“There was no disappointment today. Maybe the young substitutes, who we like to think we can believe in and help us to a different level, didn’t show that. They didn’t do anything for us at all, really. 

“We became much weaker when I made the substitutions.

“But unfortunately, sometimes when a game is drifting away from you at 2-0, one is tempted to do that. Partly because we need to see those players as well – we need to see if they really are going to be able to help us out.

“We didn’t get any help today, but we got a lot of help from the first group of players in the first half – I thought they were very good.”

PICTURE: ROB AVIS


Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.


Everyone at the South London Press thanks you for your continued support.

Former Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick has encouraged everyone in the country who can afford to do so to buy a newspaper, and told the Downing Street press briefing:

“A FREE COUNTRY NEEDS A FREE PRESS, AND THE NEWSPAPERS OF OUR COUNTRY ARE UNDER SIGNIFICANT FINANCIAL PRESSURE”

If you can afford to do so, we would be so grateful if you can make a donation which will allow us to continue to bring stories to you, both in print and online. Or please make cheques payable to “MSI Media Limited” and send by post to South London Press, Unit 112, 160 Bromley Road, Catford, London SE6 2NZ

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.