Crystal Palace v Liverpool 20.08.2018 // 8pm
THANKFULLY WE’VE GOT OFF TO A BETTER START THAN LAST SEASON, AND DESPITE BEING UNDERDOGS WE’LL BE LOOKING TO ADD TO OUR POINTS TALLY TONIGHT
THE MANAGER 05
together, we can achieve anything Tonight sees the return of Premier League football to Selhurst Park, and we’ve got a huge test ahead of us in the form of Liverpool who started their season very strongly last weekend.
I couldn’t have been happier with the way we started the season against Fulham. Three points and a clean sheet is a fantastic return from any away game, especially one against a newly-promoted side whose fans created a feverish atmosphere in the early stages which spurred their players on. They made it very difficult for us in the first half-hour, but we weathered the storm and used our experience to keep calm, and then be clinical when the chances came our way. We ended last season by going six games unbeaten, and I’m really pleased that confidence is at the same level as when the players departed for their well-deserved holidays in May. That was epitomised in the way we scored our second goal, as a number of players showed great composure to gradually move the ball from one penalty area to the other to kill the game off. We are going to have to be just as ruthless in front of goal if we are to get something from tonight’s visit of another of my former clubs. Jurgen’s team were hugely impressive in their opening fixture against West Ham United, and with the quality in their squad they will be looking to be involved in the race for UEFA Champions League places and even the title itself. The transfer window closed earlier this month, and just beforehand we managed to secure Jordan Ayew on a season-long loan deal. That concluded what I thought was a good summer of recruitment for us, as we managed to identify our targets early in the summer
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and then execute the right deals to ensure our squad is stronger and better prepared for the 10 months ahead. I have to thank Steve, the owners, Dougie Freedman and the scouting department for making that happen, and now it’s down to me and my coaching staff to get the most out of the players. We have some exciting options available to us, and it’s a relief to have a virtually fully-fit squad to select from after last season’s injury woes! Like more than half of the clubs in this competitive division, our aim first and foremost is to ensure we maintain our Premier League status. However, we want to do so without having to endure a tense final couple of months nervously looking over our shoulders for other team’s results, which we have had to do too many times in recent years. Key to that will be building up a healthy points total as early as we can. Thankfully we’ve got off to a better start than last season, and despite being underdogs we’ll be looking to add to add to our tally tonight. It’ll be a tough ask, but with your support and everyone pulling together, we can achieve anything.
He has been labelled a wonderkid, one of European football’s brightest stars and even ‘the German Messi’, but one thing is for certain – Max Meyer is an Eagle. Here he speaks to Jonathon Rogers about how perhaps the signing of the summer came about.
46 OPPOSITION
30
Age
25
Signed from
Roma
LFC Debut
August 2018
I N T E R N AT I ON AL C AP S : 3 1 GOAL S : 0
Jurgen Klopp moved to acquire Brazil’s number one after some shaky performances from his previous custodians cost his team dearly. It took around £66 million to prise Alisson from Roma, where he had starred in Serie A last season. Before then, he had come through the ranks of Internacional where he won four Brazilian titles in each of his seasons at the club and amassed 115 appearances. He played in all five of Brazil’s games in their run to the quarter-finals of the 2018 World Cup. LFC Games: 1 LFC Goals: 0
29
I N T E R N AT I ON AL C AP S : 4 6 GOAL S : 2
Age
August 2014
LFC Games: 152 LFC Goals: 6
24
IN T E RN AT I O NA L CAP S : 2 2 G OAL S: 2
Age
August 2017
Signed from Hull City
26 LFC Debut
21
IN T E RN AT I ON AL CA P S: 3 G OAL S: 0
Age
August 2015
Signed from Charlton Athletic
LFC Debut
12
LFC Games: 42 LFC Goals: 0
Signed from Southampton
LFC Games: 98 LFC Goals: 2
06 LFC Debut
27
I N T E R N AT I ON AL C AP S : 1 4 GOAL S : 0
Age
August 2015
Signed from Southampton
LFC Debut
02
LFC Games: 31 LFC Goals: 1
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OPPOSITION 47
04
Age
27
Signed from
Southampton
LFC Debut
January 2018
I N T E R N AT I ON AL C AP S : 1 9 GOAL S : 1
After becoming the world’s most expensive defender in January, the £75 million man was named in the UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season. A Dutch international since 2015, the centre-back began his career in his homeland with Groningen during the 2010/11 campaign, and after three years there he initially moved to Britain with Celtic. Two championships were won at Parkhead before he joined the Saints in September 2015, who made a huge profit on the £13 million they paid for his services. LFC Games: 23 LFC Goals: 1
19
I N T E R N AT I ON AL C AP S : 2 GOAL S : 0
Age
27
IN T E RN AT I O NA L CAP S : 4 8 G OAL S: 8
Age
August 2016
LFC Games: 92 LFC Goals: 8
Signed from Newcastle United
05 LFC Debut
IN T E RN AT I ON AL CA P S: 4 G OAL S: 0
24
LIVERPOOL
Age
N/A
v
Signed from Monaco
LFC Debut
PALACE
October 2016
LFC Games: 46 LFC Goals: 3
03 LFC Games: 0 LFC Goals: 0
Signed from Scholar
LFC Games: 67 LFC Goals: 2
66 LFC Debut
26
I N T E R N AT I ON AL C AP S : 6 7 GOAL S : 2
Age
August 2016
Signed from Schalke 04
LFC Debut
32
70 IN FOCUS
FACT FILE Date of Birth: 12th April 1989 Place of birth: Basildon When did you start at Palace? January 2016 Team supported as a youngster: Manchester United First footballing idol: Ryan Giggs Career highlight to date: Playing for Northern Ireland against Holland in front of 30,000 people Favourite food: Japanese
HOLD
Favourite TV show: Grey’s Anatomy What do you like to do in your spare time? Take the dog for a walk If you could meet anyone famous, who would it be? Julie Walters – she’d be hilarious! Hopes for the season: To stay in the Championship and push for mid-table
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IN FOCUS 71
Freya Holdaway
Pre-season has been a rollercoaster. When we were told that we weren’t getting into the Women’s Championship there was a lot of disappointment, but social media allowed us to see how much backing we had from our supporters. It was then brilliant to be allowed into the Championship, but we’ve had to quickly adapt and prepare ourselves for the step up. Everyone is buzzing ahead of the new season! The excitement levels around the club are so high and the girls have been working really hard. Expectations have been raised a little, as we don’t want to have received all that backing and not perform as we should do. It will be tough; some of us are going into the new league a bit blind as we’ve not played at that high of a level before, but we have recruited a few experienced players which should help. Juggling work and football will be tough. We will be playing teams who are much stronger, more disciplined and probably more clinical, so the biggest thing for us will be trying to optimise our training time. We are comparing ourselves against teams like Manchester United who are full-time athletes, whereas we all have day jobs so we have to manage our time well as individuals, and a team. I can’t wait to face Manchester United this season. I’m a United fan so I’m already eyeing those games up, but I’m equally looking forward to playing Charlton
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Athletic again which is always a tasty game for us regardless of the league we’re in. It’ll also be interesting to see how Tottenham Hotspur have developed since we last played them a couple of years ago. The exposure of women’s football has gone through the roof. People are beginning to buy into it - a lot more people are coming to watch the games and young girls are getting involved which allows academies to be set up. The women’s game has been on a huge journey over the past 10 years, but there is so much more room for growth so these changes have to be positive in the long run. Leading Palace out as captain in the Championship will be an honour. It’s going to be the highest level I’ve played at in my club career, so to know I’m playing in the second tier is massive because sometimes you mentally cap things and believe you’re only good enough for a certain level. What the club has achieved has helped push me on personally, so it’ll be great to show the girls that all the hard work has paid off. I’ll probably be harder on the girls, so I probably won’t be liked as much! You have to demand quality from your players, and if I don’t perform I won’t gain their respect, but I don’t see it as pressure. It’s a chance to step up and correct some things that I didn’t do right last year, so it’ll be a new challenge. We hold ourselves to certain standards and expect to perform.