Roy Hodgson says Crystal Palace have deserved better from their home games
Tuesday 1 January 2019 22:49, UK
Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson has scoffed at the suggestion that his team are playing with less freedom at Selhurst Park.
Following Sunday's 1-0 defeat to Chelsea, Palace have played 10 Premier League games at home this season, winning just two of them and scoring only five goals.
The Eagles have been better on the road - with three wins and 12 goals - and head to Molineux for a clash with Wolves on Wednesday night.
But Hodgson does not view away-days as a more-welcome prospect and when asked about his side's home record, he replied: "You're using a fact, of goals scored, to make a point which I don't agree with.
"We are certainly not playing with less freedom [at home].
"If anything, if you analyse the home games we've had, we've had far more goalscoring opportunities, far more possession, far more attempts on goal, but we haven't converted them.
"You are trying to get me to say something from a fact, that we have only scored five goals at home, which in actual fact disguises an awful lot of football that has been played.
"If you asked me, 'are you happy that some of the possession, the control of games, the opportunities we've had has only given you five goals, and do you think you should have had more?', then the answer is a resounding 'yes'.
"I'm not prepared to take that statistic and see something which isn't there."
Palace are 14th in the table ahead of Wednesday's match, four points clear of the drop zone, and their 17-goal total is better only than Newcastle (15) and Huddersfield (12).
But Hodgson added: "You look at all the teams around us, in the bottom seven. One or two might have scored a few more but, basically speaking, we are around the same ballpark.
"That we have probably the best goal difference is down to the fact that we haven't conceded that many, which is why we are on minus-9 and the next best around us is minus-12."
