Hodgson must throw off shackles at Palace

A BANNER put up recently outside Crystal Palace’s training ground told Roy Hodgson exactly what supporters group Holmesdale Fanatics thought of his safety-first style of football. ‘Palace pandemic of apathy,’ it read. ‘Change this mentality. Restore the pride, ambition and vision.’ Saturday’s win, courtesy of a first-half VAR-prompted penalty by captain Luka Milivojevic, all but assures they will be a Premier League club next season. With that in mind, it’s time for Hodgson to remove the shackles. He now has an international break to work on his team and tactics. The 73-year-old’s contract expires at the end of this campaign and that leaves the club at a crossroads. If they are to offer an extension, surely Hodgson must try to entertain. Everton are up next on April 3. Hodgson would not say Palace are safe, despite being 11 points clear of the bottom three. ‘There is still a third-frombottom team not that far from us,’ he said. ‘If we want to keep them at bay, we need to keep winning.’ West Brom, meanwhile, are on their way to the Championship. Sam Allardyce’s record of never having been relegated is set to desert him. This was a game they had to win but Darnell Furlong’s silly handball in the box put paid to that. Hodgson and Allardyce may not be in charge next season. With Chris Wilder available after leaving Sheffield United, Palace and West Brom have some serious thinking to do.