Patrick Vieira says Crystal Palace have to realise the “different level” of teams they have faced recently after picking up two points from their last three games. Speaking after the draw with Newcastle,
Patrick Vieira said: “You always want more, but at the same time we have to realise against the teams that we’ve played [recently] – Chelsea, [Manchester] United and Newcastle – those three teams are in a different level. It was important for us to always try to compete as best as we can against those teams, and I think we did well against them. Again [against Newcastle], it wasn’t easy at all, but we competed really well and we got the point I strongly believed we deserved. I think the game [against Newcastle] showed us that the other side of the game is really important. It’s not just about playing, having the ball and trying to play some nice football – [the game] was all about defending well, sticking together, working well at set-pieces, defending the second ball, and making it really difficult for them. That side of the game we did really well. The other side is, when we had the ball, I don’t think we used it well enough to really give them problems or create chances. Sometimes you have a plan for the quality of the opposition team that allows you to do what you want to do. That’s why I’m proud of the team: because we wanted to play, to have a position, but we needed to put our sleeves up and show the other side of the game, and we did it well – and that way, we’re going to do well.”
