Sports News of Tuesday, 18 December 2018

Source: footballghana.com

Crystal Palace boss backs Jordan Ayew to start firing for the club

Jordan Ayew Jordan Ayew

Crystal Palace head coach, Roy Hodgson has reiterated that Jordan Ayew and other strikers will hit top form soon despite their slow start to the Premier League season.

The Swansea City loanee has struggled for goals for the Eagles since joining the club in the summer sparking reports that the club is considering a move for another striker in January.

But his impressive performance against Leicester City over the weekend, Hodgson insists he has faith in his forwards, who he thinks can help the Eagles beat the drop.

“We have Christian Benteke coming back from injury. We have Connor Wickham trying to recover from a two-year absence. We’ve still got players like Alexander Sorloth and Jordan Ayew, bona fide centre-forwards. We still believe that we have players to score, Hodgson said as quoted by The Independent.

“I have faith in the squad, faith in the group. Until these last two games, people were telling me how well we were playing. Now I get the impression I’m being told we are absolutely hopeless.

“New faces, maybe perking up the squad and giving you another arrow to your bow, that can be a help. But in January that can be difficult.

“You need to bring someone in who will make an immediate impact. We don’t need extra bodies. We have 20-22 outfield players. Anyone who comes in would have to be a considerable improvement on what we’ve got.

“I still see the bigger picture. I see the players we have. I believe the way we play and the players we have will be more than sufficient to stay in the league.”

“The bottom line is we need to improve on the goalscoring front, take our chances more. We’re not a particularly defensive team, but someone needs to stand up and start scoring.”

Ayew played the entire game on Saturday when Palace defeated Leicester City 1-0 at home to move up on the log.