After winning the FA Cup 5th Round game against high flying Spurs, Alan Pardew's out of form Crystal Palace were expected to grind out a win against Tony Pulis' West Brom whom they shared the same points with before kick off.
It would be unfair to say Palace were unlucky as they were already three goals down by half time. Though the South London club managed to score two goals in the second half , it was a bridge too far to earn a draw . What this means is that Palace have now gone 11 games without a win in the league , slumping from 7th in the table to 14th. The last game Palace won was against Stoke and that was on December 19 2015 and hence the team have now gone 13 games this year with only two clean sheets. With 27 games played and on 34 points , Palace are now eight points clear of relegation places .
While several reasons might be given for the slump in form , it is interesting to know that the loss of star man and Congo DR winger, Yannick Bolasie might be one of them . Since the loss of Bolasie to injury in the win over Stoke in December, Palace have gone on to lose eight games , drawing three in the process in the league. Having been absent from nine games, Bolasie still retains his second spot on the teams goal scoring charts with four goals. With a shot accuracy of 57%, 12 clear chances created and a passing accuracy of 75%, Bolasie is more than vital to the teams success. Palace play a traditional counter attacking football and rely on the pace of wingers Winfred Zaha and Bolasie to cause havoc in the opposing half, coupled with the dead ball ability of Jason Puncheon and Yohan Cabaye, they are a team built to counter attack and hit on the break. While Zaha might be as tricky and quick as Bolasie, his goal conversion rate is low and he is guilty of making the wrong choice when it matters most. This is the main reason , Alan Pardew and the fans should be elated at the return of Bolasie.
Another reason for the slump reason is the indiscipline that is currently hindering the team . Palace have conceded free kicks at random and were guilty of giving away a soft penalty to Watford last weekend. What this means is that they have gained just three points from a possible 30 since the new year. Left back Pape Souare got himself sent off and suspended for three games after an unnecessary lunge on Valon Behrami last weekend and goal keeper Wayne Hennessey is lucky to be in the first team after howlers against Aston Villa and Manchester City which cost them a point.
To this end , Pardew must play to the strengths of Bolasie and work towards a successful trident of Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayo, Winfred Zaha and Yannick Bolasie, while keeping their defensive composure.
Palace are not relegation threatened at present but all that could change in a league that there are no favourites as Leicester and Tottenham have shown. Once Bolasie. , Adebayo and Zaha get their form back , Palace will be a hard nut to crack for any opponent. Alan Pardew clearly has too much work to do to get back to winning ways but surely it's not an impossible task.
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