The result is not an issue, the performance after their forth was though, we actually did the same as West Brom.
I feel Mr Hodgson was in a situation where he couldn't win.

Mitchel is better because he doesn't venture forward so much, but having said that we needed PVA to move up ....fight!

Edited by Tickled pink (19 Dec 2020 7.37pm)

Or just play Schlupp at left back and defence is stronger and he can attack also

Enjoying getting up later and not having someone who knows better than me (apart from the missus of course).

Mitchell is joint 36th in the league for tackles this season despite only playing six of our 14 games. If he'd played every game, at that rate, he'd have made the most tackles in the league.

Van Aanholt must be one of the most overrated players I've ever seen play for Palace. Simply can't understand what he adds to the team.

Get Mitchell back in and the small amount we'll lose in attack, we'll more than make up for in defence.

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold...

When PvA was out we looked far less threatening going forward. His overlapping creates extra space for Eze and Zaha. Mitchell is very timid and is not as quick as PvA, who often is able to make up for mistakes or bad positioning in a foot race. I think possibly the issue at the moment is that Eze doesn't really do much defensive work. When Mitchell was playing he had Schlupp covering him, he won't get that with Eze. I'd love to see another youth player break through but I didn't see enough in Mitchell to think he's PL ready yet. I still think he could do with a year or two on loan in the Championship.

For all his detractors, the one thing I will say about PvA is that he is always desperate to start. Clinton talked about how he kept calling him to complain that he didn't go straight back into the team when fit. I like that spirit. I don't think he'll sign a new contract though so hopefully the club are working on a replacement.

As a defender?
I am increasingly of the opinion that his attacking qualities far outweigh his defensive ones and that we would be better served with him playing further forward or as a wing back in a back 3 system (not that we have the right CBs for that at present).

Lol.

Wildly inaccurate.

Edited by sprites (21 Dec 2020 10.32pm)