Influential Crystal Palace defender won’t make Leeds United match

Joachim Andersen will not be fit for Crystal Palace’s match at Leeds United tomorrow night.

The Danish international missed Saturday’s 2-1 loss to Aston Villa due to a hamstring injury.

And it looks as if James Tomkins will once again partner Marc Guehi in the centre of defence at Elland Road.

Asked about Andersen, Eagles manager Patrick Vieira said: “He’s not going to travel with the team. He is still not 100 per cent.

“We don’t know [the full extent of the injury]. We have to see every day how he is feeling. But the game tomorrow will be too short.”

Palace have been vulnerable from set-pieces this season and conceded from another at the weekend, Matt Targett driving home after Tomkins misjudged the flight of a corner.

“Set-pieces will always be important in the game and in big games they are sometimes decided by them,” said Vieira. “We maybe didn’t spend enough time on that, but we have to be sure we’re improving and getting better because we are conceding too many goals from set-pieces, this is a fact.

“We have to improve and the best way to improve is practise that on the field. But also it is for the players to have the right mindset to defend when we need to defend.

“The game against Villa wasn’t good enough. We know the parts of the game we need to improve. We didn’t do enough against Villa to get the result.”

PICTURE: KEITH GILLARD