With only three points from their first seven games, Oliver Glasner’s Crystal Palace is in a sticky situation. Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at home to Liverpool means they now sit 18th on the Premier League Table.
However, the Eagles’ boss is confident he can turn things around.
“We have to stop talking about last season. It was a different squad. Now everybody is focused 100%. We see we are always close, we were close to get the result against Liverpool. We can also be the opposite. This is the Premier League, this is where we have to improve.”
Glasner: BBC SPORT
Glasner, who took over from Roy Hodgson, guided the South East London side to Ninth in 2023-24
This was Palace’s second-best top-flight finish since 1969/70 when they finished runners-up of Division One.
But this season, it seems as if luck is not on their side. They were denied a possible penalty when Marc Guehi went down in the box, and Virgil van Dijk seemed to have hold of his arm.
Although it may seem that that happened briefly, he does seem to impede Guehi’s path towards the ball.
That’s where you have to show some sympathy for Glasner’s side.
However, the Austrians see the international break as an opportunity to regroup and improve their performance, especially in front of goal.
“We had enough chances but we didn’t score,” That’s completely understandable for me. If you don’t have the results, the confidence of the attacking players suffers. “But again, performance, character, creating so many chances against the best defending team in the Premier League at the moment… it encourages us.”
Glasner: The Athletic
New Players
What also doesn’t help is new players, such as Eddie Nketiah, who need time to integrate into your team.
Nketiah, who signed a five-year deal for £30 million from Arsenal, still finds his feet as the club’s main striker.
But scoring goals is the club’s primary concern, so it’s time for Palace’s attack to start finding the net sooner rather than later.
Glasner must devise a solution to get his team amongst the goals again.
Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur, and a League Cup tie against Aston Villa are the club’s next fixtures after the international break.
Glasner must devise a solution to get his team amongst the goals again.
But given that Forest is beginning to find their feet under Nuno Espirito Santo, this will not be an easy task, as will the home game against Ange Postecoglou’s side.
Can Glasner get his Eagles back on track?
Find out on World In Sport.
