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da gbg bet： Crystal Palace have had a pretty unremarkable season so far and while there have been some spectacular high points – see the 3-2 win over Manchester City and Andros Townsend’s thunderbolt volley – the Selhurst Park faithful can feel disappointed that they have been unable to break their season-after-season relegation battle, considering the quality they have in all areas of the pitch.
Roy Hodgson is sometimes guilty of choosing the wrong approach or making peculiar tactical decisions but he and his players deserve credit for the extraordinary turnaround during the 17/18 season, in which a number of players stepped up to the plate and proved their value.
This season, though, there have been few remarkable performers and arguably more who have declined. Who, then, are Palace’s most improved and far removed players?
Most improved: Jeffrey Schlupp
While Aaron Wan-Bissaka has certainly been the Eagles’ most impressive and consistent player this season, the 21-year-old has been that good since his debut in February last year, while Jeffrey Schlupp has come on leaps and bounds since last campaign.
The Ghanaian is taking the label of ‘utility man’ to a whole other level – deployed at left-back, left-midfield and, more importantly, central-midfield, the former Leicester man has been the surprise package of Palace’s season.
Tucked into a three, the 26-year-old has brought rare pace and a quality finishing touch to the Palace midfield, scoring five goals – a tally that brings him level with Wilfried Zaha.
Far removed: Patrick van Aanholt
Previously keeping Schlupp out of the lineup, van Aanholt was hugely impressive last season and struck up a dangerous partnership with Zaha on the left-flank, although this campaign he has looked less confident on the ball and his defensive shortcomings are being exposed far more often.
In the 17/18 season, the nine-cap Dutchman was a scoring threat for the Eagles, striking five times in 28 league appearances – however, he has netted just once in 26 appearances in 18/19.
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When he isn’t contributing going forward, the reasoning behind starting the 28-year-old is far less convincing considering his often poor positioning on the back foot can be a liability. He can undoubtedly bounce back from this disappointing six months, although he needs to get his act together sooner rather than later.