Roy Hodgson: Lack of strikers and goalscorers has been constant issue at Palace

By Richard Cawley
richard@slpmedia.co.uk

Roy Hodgson is hoping that Crystal Palace can finally bolster their attacking options in the next transfer window – but admits that has been an ongoing challenge since he was appointed.

Only Premier League basement club Norwich City (26) have scored fewer goals than the Eagles (30) this season.

Palace have lost their last seven fixtures and failed to score in six of them.

“The lack of strikers and goalscorers has been a constant thing the whole of the three seasons I’ve been at the club,” said Hodgson after Monday’s 2-0 loss at Wolves.

“You mustn’t forget in the last eight matches we will have played the top teams in the country and we’re doing it with a weakened group of players.

“We’re not even able to put out the team we’d like to put out.”

That will be the case again for the Premier League finale on Sunday at home to Tottenham.

Christian Benteke will serve the final match of his suspension for his dismissal after the final whistle at Aston Villa.

Mamadou Sakho (hamstring) joins James Tomkins, Gary Cahill, Luka Milivojevic and Patrick van Aanholt on the injury list.

“An awful lot of things have not gone our way in this period of time and period of bad results,” said Hodgson.

“But we need to get on with it and make sure we get our players back fit for the start of next season.

“We’re coming up against very strong teams, very powerful, and in good form. They often get that goal that we find so elusive.

“I can’t magic players out of thing air – we have the squad we have. We had five junior players who had not played first-team football on the bench [against Wolves] and one [Tyrick Mitchell] makes his [full] debut.

“We’re not going to recover any injured players – we will be putting the same ones out. They are really tired but are giving their all for the club.”