How’s Crystal Palace’s season gone so far?
Start to the season – 1/10
More than £50 million was spent in arguably Crystal Palace’s greatest ever transfer window on paper, so to be 17th in the Premier League at the half-way stage is somewhat disappointing.
Performance of the manager – N/A
Sam Allardyce has barely been in charge two minutes. Under his predecessor Alan Pardew, the Eagles were the worst team in the country throughout the calendar year. So he gets a ‘1’, too.
Team performance of the season so far – Stoke City (H)
September’s 4-1 humbling of the Potters hoisted Palace to eighth in the table, but it proved to be a false dawn and the then bottom of the table side are now five points ahead of the Eagles in 13th place.
Star player – Wilfried Zaha
While many of Palace’s summer recruits have struggled, the boy who rose through the ranks at Selhurst Park has gone from strength to strength scoring three goals and assisting an incredible eight in 17 appearances. He’s now off to the African Cup of Nations.
Where to strengthen in January – Left-back, up front, central midfield
With Pape Souare out for the foreseeable future, Zeki Fryers, to whom the right-footed Martin Kelly is often preferred, is Palace’s only natural left-back. This, along with up front, with Connor Wickham also out long-term, is likely to be a priority area for Big Sam, who may also wish to bolster his central midfield ranks.
Likelihood of strengthening in January – 10/10
A new manager is always likely to bring new signings and it is unlikely that Sam would have taken the job unless assurances over arrivals were made.
Challenges ahead – Recruitment
January is always a difficult market in which to find quality, at least at affordable prices, and Palace could suffer if they are forced to add for the sake of it. With Allardyce in charge, though, the Eagles are unlikely to go down regardless. Perhaps a touch of complacency could creep in?
Predicted end of season position – 15th
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