Crystal Palace have had a great start to the season in the Premier League but Roy Hodgson is still looking for improvements in his squad.
The Eagles picked up the three points away to a lethargic West Ham side in the London derby on Saturday and moved into sixth place in the table.
With Manchester United and Tottenham struggling to pick up points, Hodgson was asked about his side’s chances of pipping the two giants to a place in the top six to which he hinted on potential January reinforcements.
He said: “Most people will tell you that they are expecting the clubs with the vast amounts to spend on quality players to assert themselves over 38 games. If we are going to get close, we are going to have to make certain that we are not reliant on so few forwards and full-backs. That is something we will have to address in the January transfer window.”
A productive striker has been a priority for Palace since the start of last season and the permanent signing of Jordan Ayew in the summer didn’t quite raise the excitement levels among the fans. However, the Ghanaian has hit the ground running having scored three goals including the winner against West Ham on Saturday.
Christian Benteke and Connor Wickham are yet to open their account this season and their form hasn’t quite been good enough over the last few years. A new striker will add a lot more to this Palace side which could help them finish in the top half at the very least.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s move to Manchester United left the Eagles with just Joel Ward at right-back while Patrick van Aanholt is the club’s only senior left-back. Reinforcements in both full-back positions will be massively important and with the amount of money Palace received for their Wan-Bissaka this summer, cash shouldn’t really be that big of a problem in the upcoming January transfer window.
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