Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira has expressed his delight at how well his back five have been performing on the pitch and their eagerness to learn the Frenchman’s style of play during training.
Patrick Viera said: “They are all really good on the ball and technically quite comfortably playing. The attitude they have gives us a lot of hope to improve.”
Vieira also spoke about the club’s decision to not go into the transfer window and buy a replacement left-back to replace Patrick van Aanholt, instead choosing to keep the faith in 22-year-old Mitchell who still has less than 30 senior appearances to his name.
Patrick Viera said: “Dougie (Freeman, sporting director) and the chairman had a big hope for him in the football club. We knew how good he was and we knew about his potential and we didn’t want to sign someone to block his progress. At this level, he needs to play every week and he is doing it well.”
The Frenchman also praised Mitchell’s work rate and desire to get better off the pitch,
Patrick Viera added: “He is always asking questions and he is a really good listener, who is good at taking information on board. His potential is fantastic. I believe that if he keeps developing this way he will be a really exciting player in the future.”
Vieira is expected to stick with his same back five for the trip to Liverpool tomorrow, with the team picking up no fresh injury concerns following their last match against Spurs.
