Why smart recruitment and a change of style are paying off for Crystal Palace

After back-to-back 14th-place Premier League finishes in Roy Hodgson's final two seasons, Crystal Palace raised a few eyebrows by appointing Patrick Vieira as their new manager last summer.

Plenty of bottom-half clubs have struggled when they attempt to make the step up to the next level but the early signs at Palace appear positive.

A more positive playing style has earned them plaudits and they sit tenth in the Premier League while also looking forward to an FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea on Sunday.

An accompanying change in mindset off the pitch has been just as important. Having made a net profit of around £30m during Hodgson's final three seasons, Palace spent £77m last summer.

And, significantly, they appear to have spent that money wisely, injecting some youthful energy into what had been the oldest squad in the Premier League during the past two seasons thanks to the additions of Marc Guehi, Michael Olise, Joachim Andersen, Odsonne Edouard and the loan signing of Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher.

Under Hodgson, Palace were generally content to sit tight and hit star man Wilfried Zaha on the counter-attack but Gallagher, who leads the league in pressures according to FBref.com data, has typified a more aggressive approach out of possession.

The England midfielder's absence against his parent club Chelsea is a hefty obstacle for the Eagles to overcome this weekend, particularly on the large Wembley pitch.

Vieira's Palace have also sought to impose themselves more with the ball and their average share of possession has risen to 49.8 per cent (ranked joint-tenth) from just 40.1 per cent (ranked 18th) last season.

As the graph above shows, the south London club's investment in talent, and a change in mentality, resulted in them improving from a side who consistently conceded more goals than they scored over the last two seasons into one resembling a solid mid-table side, who give as good as they get most weeks.

Only Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal are allowing fewer shots per game than Palace this term and, by being more proactive, they have improved from 16th to eighth in terms of permitting opposition touches in their box.

From an attacking point of view they still attempt relatively few shots, ranking 18th – the same as Hodgson's final season in 2020-21.

However, that appears to be a consequence of a deliberate choice to be more patient, as the Eagles rank second for both proportion of shots taken in the penalty area and for how close their average shot is from goal.

Those factors have improved their chance-conversion rate and they are scoring 1.39 goals per game, up from 1.08 and 0.82 in the previous two league campaigns.

While Palace are tenth in the league table, they are only three points above 15th-placed Newcastle, so the margins are tight and they may rue not turning more of their 13 draws – the joint-most in the top flight – into wins.

They have won only three games against sides below them in the table, which must improve if they are to land odds of 11-10 to record only their second Premier League top-half finish.

Palace have a seemingly soft run-in as a home game against struggling Manchester United is their only remaining clash with a top-half team.

Toppling Chelsea on neutral turf on Sunday will be tough but the Eagles' underlying stats and the profile of the squad moulded by Vieira suggest that solid foundations are being laid for the future.

Not got a bet365 account? Bet £10 & get £50 in free bets

Open account offer. Minimum deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as bet credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Minimum odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude bet credits stake. Time limits/T&Cs apply. 18+ begambleaware.org

MORE FREE BETS

Today's top sports betting stories

Follow us on Twitter @racingpostsport