Roy Hodgson: Crystal Palace need heads and hearts against Brighton
Monday 27 November 2017 15:48, UK
Roy Hodgson believes that it is vital that his Crystal Palace players use their heads as well as their hearts in their derby match against Brighton on Tuesday.
Palace travel to the Amex to face their nearest rivals for the first time in over four years, and they will know that a win could take them level on points with West Brom in 17th.
However, Hodgson feels he needs to ensure his players maintain their focus when they take on Brighton.
He said: "It's important as a manager that you don't add to the hype, because you need players to play with their head and their heart.
"If you put too much emphasis on the heart, maybe you don't have the head."
When asked whether the fans' expectations meant that he was dreading the trip to the south-coast, Hodgson responded: "I don't dread any games. You should be looking forward to games.
"I think it's important to feel some sort of nervous tension.
"I'm hoping to see a good performance tomorrow and that we're going to continue playing in the style we've been playing. You hope that something unfortunate doesn't happen to you and that you get the rub of the green.
Having lost eight successive games without scoring at the beginning of the season, Palace's form has picked up in recent weeks, with eight points from six games.
However, Hodgson rejected any suggestion that his side have turned a corner.
He said: "I don't know that we've turned a corner. Everywhere you go there's a corner to turn.
"I think the fans are starting to see a team that they can identify with better than the team they saw at the start of the season.
"I think they are getting some sort of belief that even though we've given ourselves a mountain to climb, there's some chance we'll be able to do that."
