Neil Warnock’s return to Selhurst Park did not go as planned but positives can be taken from an upbeat performance even though the end product just was not there on this occasion.
Burnley proved to be a team full of grit and determination and if it was not for the Julian Speroni heroics at the end, the men from Turf Moor would have come away with all three points.
Warnock needs time, the team needs time. But it is important that we get our first win on the board soon or we could find ourselves in a tricky position.
What positives can we draw?
There were signs that Warnock is moulding a team into his image, the players he has brought in suit his style of play. It is a work in progress but Palace are getting back to their best. There is some depth to the squad now, we sure needed it.
As we know the transfer deadline was productive. Players arrived, ones that will enhance the group and hopefully help push us up the table. More importantly, the squad depth looks encouraging. If we have injuries, which we will, we have players that can come in at a similar level as our starters. That is important in the Premier League.
If you look at our substitutes for the Burnley game for a start, it was a very strong bench and gave us options – Yannick Bolasie, Kevin Doyle, Jonathan Williams, Zeki Fryers, Martin Kelly, Joe Ledley and Wayne Hennessey. It is a lot better than when we started the season and do not forget that we are missing Brede Hangeland, Marouane Chamakh and Andrew Johnson adding yet more options for Neil Warnock.
It is not just all about squad depth, you need the quality to couple that. I do believe with the recent arrivals the quality factor has been improved.
Julian Speroni
The Argentine confirms that he is truly the number one goalkeeper at the club. At the start of the season there were questions that Speroni was not going to be first choice and to make matters worse, he was looking for pastures new. That was not the case thankfully and he signed a new deal and showing once again he can adapt to the Premier League. He is a fan favourite and we would not have it any other way.
His performances on the pitch have endeared him to the Palace faithful. His penalty save at the death on Saturday was another example of why he is such an integral part of this Palace team. I would not change him and I hope Warnock does not have any ideas to do so. He will be a big player for us this year.
Saves like that the one from Burnley midfielder Arfield could be the difference in Palace enjoying another season of Premier League football.
Improvements
The theme of ‘progress’ has seemed to carry through a lot of these features, ultimately progress is what we want to see Palace achieve. Of course improvements can be worked on for our next game against Everton.
On Saturday we were full of enthusiasm. Zaha was providing the creativity down the flank but we just could not finish off our chances, something that was a feature of our game last season.
I do not think that Warnock has settled on his best eleven either. Players were missing through injury, most notably that of Marouane Chamakh. Both Dwight Gayle and Frazier Campbell provide pace while Gayle has provided goals so far this season. However, Chamakh’s link up play and aerial prowess were missed on Saturday.
Getting a settled starting eleven will stand us in good stead for the coming months, just like it did last season. Warnock went with this line-up against Burnley – Julian Speroni, Joel Ward, Damien Delaney, Scott Dann, Adrian Mariappa, Mile Jedinak, James McArthur, Wilfried Zaha, Frazier Campbell, Jason Puncheon, Dwight Gayle. A 4-2-3-1 formation.
Personally, I feel that this could be our best eleven when all our injury concerns are over – Julian Speroni, Joel Ward, Damien Delaney, Scott Dann, Adrian Mariappa, Mile Jedinak, James McArthur, Wilfried Zaha, Marouane Chamakh, Yannick Bolasie, Dwight Gayle. A 4-2-3-1 formation
With the players we now have at our disposal I view that as our strongest eleven, the players are proven at Premier League level. All we need now is our first win and as soon as we get the ball rolling we should kick on. It will give everyone a huge boost, the players, the fans, and most importantly Neil Warnock.
It could come against Everton. It will be an incredibly tough game, but we have done it before.
