'Sorry but I can't agree with the negative vibes ringing out against Parish (who effectively saved our club from near liquidation) and Vieira.
We are not owned by a board with a bottomless pit of cash (some of it borrowed thanks to FA rules) nor are we owned by ruthless, unethical Saudi princes. There is a real community heart to our club that all has it's distinctive value/ importance.'

Sorry, first part of this is irrelevant now. A lot of water has gone under the bridge since then.
Also, 'if we are not owned by a board with a bottomless pit of cash', is it not the job of said board to do something about that, ie increased investment/sell out ?
Sadly, the result of their complacency is now coming home to roost !!

I know there is a a lot of negativity, but I'll put my tin hat on try to be a bit more optimistic.

We had some shots! And if not for some wasteful finishing we might have scored a goal or 2.

Vieira's tactics worked very well early on. Whilst not revolutionary, it shows that the coaching set up know how to set up a team.

It was a very different shape without that ball than I've seen before. Wilf and Olise tucking right in to almost play as CM's, CD stuck on Mac Allister. Unless he went too far and then Anderson stepped out. It was instrumental in stopping them playing and us creating chances.

The goal was against the run of play and sometimes you have to hold your hands up. Sharp movement, perfectly timed run, great finish.

Unfortunately Doucoure went a bit mental and was incredibly lucky not to get sent off. We are then in a much trickier position, Luka doesn't have the legs to keep up with Mac Allister, and we have no Hughes. So he gambled with Eze. Who looked lost for most of the 2nd half. Mac Allister started to get more ball and dominate.

We had a decent flurry late on, Eze starting to find his grove, Ahamada looking spritely. JPM with a nice interchange.

Although it feels it, I don't think we are a million miles off. And think we lack 2 things:

Bravery with the ball - too often we pass back, because its no risk, when there is a completely makable pass inside/forward. If there is any pressure at all, the ball always goes back. Clyne is a key culprit of this, sh1ts himself every time he has the ball. As a result we always allow teams to organise themselves.

Urgency in attack - In Olise, Zaha and Eze, we have players who are dead talented but love more touches than needed. Coupled with the inverted wingers means we are always checking back and holding the ball vs capitalising and getting a ball in. Zaha must have got to the by line about 5 times last night, and ever time he checked back and either lost the ball or passed back. Olise was the same.

You know, I use to think like this but I'm with Becky on this one. As Becky said, they train day in and day out on the best way to play football, in the most elite league in the world and are paid absolutely ridiculously staggering amounts of money to do so. The team lacking confidence, cry me a river frankly as I'm sure getting in their Bentley's and driving back to their mansions after losing last night must have been so hurtful for them, as the rest of caught a wet and cold train back to East Croydon.

I'm not buying it as an excuse anymore. As Becky said, we heard that about Benteke for what, 6 years? If I was in their position I think I'd be pretty confident in myself, it's just an excuse and they need to get over themselves frankly.

Edited by SnapperKain (16 Mar 2023 11.16am)

The trouble with computers, of course, is that they're very sophisticated idiots

I think that’s my view as well about last night and City the other day. We nearly got favourable results in both. Let’s get the arsenal game out the way and prepare for Leicester and the matches after. Hopefully we will get the results to stay up but it’s going to be a close thing. I also hope we stick with Edouard up front as chopping and changing doesn’t help the team or him. A bit more luck last night and the result goes our way. It’s a thin line and we are missing confidence at the moment which will come back once we get a win or just on the scoreboard? Hopefully the international break will get Hughes and our keepers back and even Macca.

I keep on saying it, but this is a massive issue for me.

Zaha has developed the habit of holding the ball too long for a number of reasons.

Firstly. mindset. He has been the big fish in a small pond for too long. He does of course have confidence bordering on arrogance (as do most top players), but the habits we see now result from an almost unique experiment entitled 'What happens when an entire top-flight club relies on one player forever?'. He is partly being selfish when he holds the ball, but mostly just accepting the responsibility the club has heaped on his shoulders.

Secondly, tactics. We have moved him from the wing (including the right) where his job was to beat his man and cross it, to left-inside forward, and now to centre forward. We stopped asking him to cross it, and asked him to try and score. For many years we have left him to do that alone. He rarely has any runners past him, only support behind. He actually has a surprisingly good awareness of others and weight of pass, he just rarely gets to use either.

Third, declining pace. He has come back far too soon from hamstring injuries far too often. He cannot knock it past a fullback and race him over 10 yards anymore. A sure sign of a lazy pundit is when they say 'Palace have threat on the break with Zaha, Eze and Olise'. None of them are fast in a sprint, and Zaha in particular isn't. That's why so many counterattacks die a death at his feet.

Fourth, quality of teammate. Some of the absolute s*** we have had, and continue to have, upfront is enough to make any winger keep the ball.

The forth point is all that matters now. We can't change the first three in respect of Zaha, but Olise and Eze will develop the same tendencies if we cannot find a striker with good movement they can look for when in possession.

Edited by TheBigToePunt (16 Mar 2023 12.46pm)

Doucoure to be replaced with deep midfield role and passing ability for Andersen, Richards in back 4.