Roy Hodgson Hails Crystal Palace Players' Fighting Spirit After Narrow Defeat to On-Form Arsenal

Roy Hodgson was left to rue Arsenal's second goal as Crystal Palace went down 3-2 at home to the Gunners to remain just a point clear of the relegation zone.

Andros Townsend's strike five minutes into the second half cancelled out Shkodran Mustafi's opener, but Alexis Sanchez' quickfire double meant that James Tomkins' late goal was nothing more than a consolation for the Eagles.

Speaking after the match, Hodgson told Sky Sports: "The second goal was difficult having worked so hard in the first half to try to contain them.

"To get to 1-1 and then go down 2-1 you knew it was going to be an uphill task, but I have to give the players a lot of credit because we conceded a third and many teams would have capitulated and we certainly didn't do that."

Despite the end result, Hodgson was able to take encouragement from his side's second half performance, claiming: "The second half was an even game and maybe we had slightly the better of the opportunities. We need to keep on fighting and doing the right things and it's good for me to know that even when the team is 3-1 down against a side of Arsenal's quality there is no question of resignation or not continuing to do the right things and work very hard."

Things get no easier for Hodgson and his men next time out, as they host Pep Guardiola's runaway league leaders Manchester City on New Year's Eve.