5 Tactical Changes Crystal Palace Fans Can Expect This Season
No longer scared of keeping the ball, what can we expect to see of Palace next season?
During their two years in the Premier League, Crystal Palace fans have seen their side evolve: from clueless Sunday League plodders under Ian Holloway to being a tight-knit defensive unit under Tony Pulis and porous relegation certainties under Neil Warnock, all the way to their current incarnation as Alan Pardew's cut-throat counter attackers: Crystal Palace have been a club in perpetual search of an identity with the fans never completely certain what version of their team will show up - almost on a week-to-week basis.
Uncertainty due to late forays into the transfer market or untimely managerial changes have no doubt contributed to this state of permanent flux, and with manager Alan Pardew bringing Yohan Cabaye and Connor Wickham on board, as well as the loan signing of Patrick Bamford, it's looking like there will be further evolution still. However, this time the evolution has a sense of continuity to it. While Cabaye is an obvious upgrade, the side have managed to keep key players in key areas and there isreal competition for places, especially in midfield.
Now that Pardew has had a full pre-season to gird his players' loins for the challenges ahead, I take a look at what tactical changes we can expect see in the coming weeks...
5. Less Emphasis On Defending
The key to Palace's successes over the last two years has been their resolute defence. Under Ian Holloway, Palace conceded 17 goals in their first 8 games and found themselves bottom of the table. Not forgetting Keith Millen's contribution as caretaker manager, it was only when Tony Pulis came in and shored up the defence that Palace managed to climb up the table - conceding only 26 goals from his 21 games in charge - with 5 of those coming from the last two games of the season when safety was assured . This trend continued last season. Under Warnock, Palace conceded 25 goals in his 16 league games in charge yet only conceded 21 in the 20 games they played after his departure.
The defensive solidity did come at a cost during the 2013/2014 season, with Palace scoring the third fewest goals over the whole of the season - a meagre 33. This lack of intent brought teams on to Palace who had to endure long periods without the ball, defending for their lives. Due to a combination of resolute defending and a bit of luck, Palace managed to grind out results. During the 2014/2015 campaign, Palace were much more ambitious and ended the season the tenth highest scorers with 47 goals.
With the outfield signings Pardew has made to date, I think it's fair to say that the emphasis, in his mind, has been on scoring more goals. Under Pulis, Palace often went with the 'McJedley' midfield three of captain Mile Jedinak, James McArthur and bearded hipster Joe Ledley who provided a solid base on which to protect the defence, whereas Pardew preferred playing a more attacking midfield three, bringing Jason Puncheon in from the wing last season to play in the 'false 10' position that I've just made up.
We don't know exactly how Pardew will accommodate all his attacking players but I think it's a fair bet that he would prefer to sacrifice some of our defensive solidity to fit them in. Whether this has a detrimental effect on our defensive record remains to be seen, but a front six that contains Puncheon, Yohan Cabaye, Wilfried Zaha and Yannick Bolasie is sure to cause some defensive headaches for opposition players and managers.