Some 446 days after the humiliation of Nice, when he was left grey with despair by England’s defeat to Iceland, management continues to be a bruising experience for Roy Hodgson. This was meant to be a glorious homecoming, the son of a Croydon bus driver returning to his boyhood club and immediately kick-starting a recovery. Instead, it ended in Palace becoming the first club in top-flight history to lose their opening five league games without scoring and now feeling ever more uncertain of maintaining their status.
That may be an overly dire thing to suggest in mid-September but these are dire circumstances for Palace. They are rooted to the foot of the table and could well find themselves in that position come mid-October given their next three league fixtures are trips to the two Manchester clubs followed by a visit from Chelsea. Hence why this was viewed as a must-win fixture for the hosts, but they deservedly lost to a reinvigorated Southampton side and for Hodgson, stood in a downpour as the final whistle blew, the size of the task ahead of him became glaringly apparent.
Having replaced Frank de Boer following his 77-day tenure in charge of Palace, Hodgson could take some encouragement from the endeavour his side displayed. Their commitment was total and they would have grabbed at least a point following Steven Davis’s early goal had it not been for two stunning reaction saves by Fraser Forster. But overall there was a lack of quality and conviction from Palace, with Hodgson admitting that part of his task in the coming days and weeks is to restore confidence to his players. They appear to have none.
For the visitors this was a much-needed victory after their home defeat to Watford last week and one carved out of a display marked by assurance and togetherness. For Mauricio Pellegrino there was also the opportunity to introduce Virgil van Dijk as a late substitute following his failed attempt to leave the club and the warm applause the defender received from the travelling support suggested his attempted mutiny has been forgiven if not totally forgotten.
Pellegrino spoke of how his team had controlled the ball and while that was not quite the case – Southampton had marginally more possession than Palace – they rarely looked troubled after taking the lead.
Six minutes had been played when Davis, making his 200th appearance for Southampton, slid a pass into the path of Dusan Tadic that he quickly redirected towards the six-yard box having manoeuvred past Palace’s left-back, Jeffrey Schlupp. Wayne Hennessey was able to parry the cross away but only as far as Davis who, having run forward, steered the ball into the far corner of the net from an unmarked position.
The goal, Southampton’s second from open play in the Premier League this season, sucked the life out of Selhurst Park and despair turned to agitation as the visitors began to dominate possession. Their passing was crisp and their use of the width of the pitch a concern for Palace, with Cédric Soares’s charging runs causing Schlupp regular problems.
The hosts, lined-up in a 4-4-1-1 formation that Hodgson has traditionally favoured, did not cave in. They tried hard to close down the opposition and once in possession moved the ball quickly, with no one standing out more than Ruben Loftus-Cheek who on his return from injury was deployed in a supporting role behind Christian Benteke and regularly troubled Southampton with his powerful and direct approach play.
On 29 minutes he hit a low drive that went just wide and shortly before that delivered a right-sided cross that led to the first of Forster’s eye-catching stops. The keeper looked beaten after Benteke fired at him from point-blank range but Forster managed to claw the ball away for a corner to much disbelief.
After 49 minutes Forster reacted quickly to prevent Jason Puncheon from equalising after he slid in and made strong contact with Schlupp’s low cross. Cue more disbelief.
A Palace goal suddenly felt inevitable but from there their approach play again became disjointed, with their threat further neutered by Hodgson’s decision to replace Loftus-Cheek with Bakary Sako on 78 minutes. Boos rang out from the home support but, as the manager explained, the Chelsea loanee had to come off due to cramp.
Southampton saw the contest out relatively comfortably with Mario Lemina particularly impressing with his muscular presence in central midfield. By the time Van Dijk entered the fray on 86 minutes Palace knew the jig was up, with Joel Ward’s high and wide shot in stoppage time summing up the hosts waywardness and leading to an exodus of Palace fans, many chuntering with frustration as they departed. Welcome back, Roy.
Comments (…)
Sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion