Roy Hodgson Hails Best Away Performance of the Season as Crystal Palace Secure First Win on the Road
Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson has lauded his side's 0-3 victory against 10-man Leicester on Saturday as the best away performance of the season, with goals from Christian Benteke, Wilfried Zaha and Bakary Sako ensuring all three points headed back to Selhurst Park.
The win at the King Power Stadium ended the Eagles' eight game winless streak on the road this season, with Benteke's opener the first away goal for the club this campaign.
Brimming with confidence, the Eagles played the majority of the game against the Foxes with an attacking intent, which was unmatched by the home side. It paved the way for a victory which stretched the club's unbeaten streak to seven games.
When asked if the performance was the best away game of the season Hodgson told the club's website: “I suppose it is because we won, but I thought we played very well at Tottenham when we lost 1-0, and I was pretty pleased when we lost at Newcastle.
"Of course, when you’re coming home after a defeat you don’t feel any sense of satisfaction, but today we do.
“It’s three clean sheets in a row away from home which is good, and even more importantly we’ve cured the hoodoo of not scoring away from home. That has always been a bit surprising for me as in each of those away games as well as the ones at Brighton and West Brom, the chances were there and we were very close to scoring goals. Today, we did score them."
As the Eagles ended their own barren run on the road, striker Benteke ended an unwanted streak of his own when he headed home the opener to score his first goal in 14 games, and his manager was duly pleased especially following the penalty debacle against Bournemouth.
He said: "That’s great for him. He was very strong and did the right things after the penalty miss and held his hands up, and everyone in the club appreciated that.
"We know that he is a quality player and the goal he scored is the sort of one he’s going to score, and had it not been for a wonder-save by Kasper Schmeichel, he would have scored two today because he got in the positions well, and when he does that he’s a good header of the ball.
“His record at Aston Villa was one every two games, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he matched that here in the remaining games of the season – that’s what we’re hoping for.
"Perhaps it’s a confidence thing and all strikers go through periods where the ball doesn’t go in the net for them, and he’s had a lot of injuries this year.
"Now he’s playing 90 minutes and starting every game, and if we get the type of service that Andros provided, he’ll score goals,” he added.