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Crystal Palace manager Sam Allardyce targets three more points for Premier League safety

LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 10:  Yohan Cabaye of Crystal Palace (obscured) is mobbed by team mates as he celebrates scoring their second goal during the Premie
Image: Sam Allardyce's Crystal Palace travel to Anfield on Sunday to face Liverpool

Sam Allardyce is looking to secure a minimum of three points from Crystal Palace's next three fixtures in the belief that will secure their Premier League status.

Palace visit Champions League-chasing Liverpool on Sunday, live on Nissan Super Sunday, before hosting Tottenham and then Burnley in the space of four days.

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Allardyce believes if they can take their season's points total from 35 to 38, the Eagles can begin to plan for the 2017/18 season.

The former England manager has helped engineer a revival in Palace's form since the end of the January transfer window when the threat of relegation was severe.

However, despite his side being so close to his target, Allardyce is not taking safety for granted ahead of the club's final six games of the campaign.

"Thirty-eight points has been enough for (survival for) 10 years or more and we have got an opportunity to get there and get beyond it," said the 62-year-old.

"It is a big week for us to see how many points we can get. We want to take pressure off ourselves and get as many points as we can this week.

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Christian Benteke scored the equaliser for Crystal Palace against Leicester
Image: Christian Benteke (L) has helped the Eagles secure three victories from their past five Premier League matches

"At the end of this week there will only be three games left and, instead of one win out of six you might need one win out of three, which heaps the pressure back on again, so let's get as many points as we can.

"We are capable of getting points out of these games this week, as we have proved in the last six or seven games.

"I hope the players believe, as I believe, that they are capable of getting points out of them.

"Taking five wins out of six - and six wins out of nine - and we are still not safe, so it shows just how difficult a task it was to get us out of the bottom three."

Mamadou Sakho's influence on Palace's improvement has been significant in the past couple of months, but the terms of his loan deal from Liverpool mean he is ineligible for Sunday's fixture.

In his absence, the fit-again James Tomkins is expected to start and victory could help the club's desire to permanently recruit Sakho.

Danny Welbeck of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Arsenal at Selhurst Park on April 10, 2017
Image: Mamadou Sakho (R) helped his side prevent Arsenal from scoring earlier this month at Selhurst Park

"Does Mama want to stay?" Allardyce asked. "Has Mama created a market for himself for other clubs, if not in the Premier League, in Europe, because they have monitored his performances with us?

"It is a big decision he has to make. If we stay in the Premier League, we will try our best to try and sign him.

"We will see how we go without him on Sunday. We have managed without Scott Dann and James Tomkins, with Martin Kelly stepping in, and let's see how well they can do without him.

"I will tell you what might be and what might not be when we get safe."

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