Roy Hodgson says Palace’s work on the training ground on seeing defending as a team effort is behind their recent solidity at the back.
“It’s a question of understanding what they’re good at,” he said in his pre-match press conference. “Making certain that they really embrace the team ethos, and to realise that defending isn’t a question of how good your goalkeeper and centre-backs are, it’s really more a question of the two front players protecting the midfield, who then protect the back four, who then protect the goalkeeper.
“The training ground has been very useful, especially in the week before Brighton.