It has been a tremendous start to the season for Crystal Palace and, although it is still early in proceeding, boss Roy Hodgson deserves great credit. As one of the most experienced managers in the Premier League, it should be no surprise what the former England boss has been able to achieve at Selhurst Park after 10 games this term.
As well as taking charge of the Three Lions, the 72-year-old has experience from both near and far and, after spells in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland Italy and the UAE, Hodgson has been able to draw on different footballing cultures all over Europe and beyond.
It could be argued his efforts are much more appreciated in the foreign lands than on English shores.
Hodgson’s critics would highlight indifferent spells with Fulham, Liverpool, West Brom and England to claim the coach has failed to deliver on occasions.
There are few managers, if any, who get to Hodgson’s years of experience and do not have their bad times along the way.
Now back at the club where he started his playing days as a youth in the mid-60s, Hodgson is starting to claw back respect at Crystal Palace.
📡 Roy Hodgson will be speaking to the press this afternoon ahead of Sunday's clash with Leicester.
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— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) November 1, 2019
The Eagles sit in sixth place in the Premier League table with just five points between themselves and the top four.
Manchester United and Tottenham are both behind Palace in the standings and there now seems to be an air of cautious optimism at Selhurst Park.
What makes their efforts even more impressive is that they lost one of their star players over the summer when Aaron Wan-Bissaka made the switch to United.
Keeping hold of attacker Wilfried Zaha was key and once again there is likely to be much more interest in the Ivory Coast international during the coming January transfer window.
But the key to Palace’s success is that this is a side that is based upon the sum of their parts and not just the individual pieces.
The players seemed to have bought into Hodgson’s approach and perhaps their years of battling against relegation have formed a strong bond that is starting to take the team places higher up the table.
A top-half finish for Palace would be a strong season after those campaigns looking to avoid Championship football.
A finish in the top six would be a dream season for the Eagles and if they can keep as many players fit and avoid selling stars in January, then they could pull of one of the stories of the season come May.
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