Saturday 5 May 2018 16:41, UK
Roy Hodgson praised his Crystal Palace players after they came from behind to secure their top-flight status with victory at Stoke.
Second-half strikes from James McArthur and Patrick van Aanholt saw the Eagles recover from Xherdan Shaqiri's first-half free-kick to earn the victory which secures Premier League football for another season.
"My players deserve all of the credit, particularly after Stoke's strong first half," Hodgson told Sky Sports.
"They came out of the blocks and played exactly how we thought they would, lobbing the ball up to Peter Crouch and asking questions of our back four. They stopped us playing the kind of football we would like to play.
"But I'm proud of the team in the second half, we got the ball down better and played the ball better through the midfield.
"We were probably aided by the fact they had something to hold onto, that helped us, but it was a very good second-half performance.
"I'm really proud of my team's performance, not just today but over the season."
Palace's victory sealed Stoke's relegation to the Championship, bringing their 10-year spell in the Premier League to an end.
"I empathise with Stoke today, it's a very tough day," Hodgson added.
"Any joy I feel is measured by the faces of the Stoke players, who really gave everything they could possibly give.
"Unfortunately they came across a team that wasn't prepared to lie down and we profited from the fact they had to win the game and take chances."
