Alan Pardew looks to be about to deliver on his plans to strengthen the Charlton defence ahead of the crunch Palace game - http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/charlton_athletic/6954656.stm. The loan signings of ex-Valley favourite Danny Mills and Readings' no-nonsense Sam Sodje will add quality and bite to the Addicks defence.
Pardew has pulled off something of a coup here as both could reasonably have expected to stay in the Premiership. Both are experienced, this side of 30, and both will bring some quality, organisation and leadership. Mills must be favourite to start at Selhurst Park in the absence of Yassin Moutaouakil and I suspect Sam Sodje might warm the bench to help maintain concentration of the centre-back pairing. It's a risk introducing two new players in the same game at this stage of the season, so if Sodje starts I think it might reflect considerably more disappointment from Alan Pardew with his defence than he has previously let on. What Pardew has done here is act on his earlier warnings to his squad, something that Curbs was pretty poor at....
This match is traditionally Madras-hot and will be spicier still since we last met; Palace having been relegated in the last few minutes of that game; Richard Murray's dismissal of Simon Jordan following the match; the bag of chips that Simon Jordan carries on his shoulders about our club ever since.
Charlton will be roared on by their 2400 allocation on Saturday which is well down on what we've had there as visitors in the past. Maybe it's a reflection of a smaller capacity at Selhurst or perhaps all they can spare if they are confident of selling out? I guess they only get 3,000 at the Valley, so perhaps I shouldn't complain too loudly.
Palace have a settled squad of players and looked very well organised at Ipswich on Sunday, where they were unfortunate not have come away with something. They had a quiet pre-season in the transfer market and looked weaker to me for it. I was surprised therefore, with their opening day win at Southampton although their late-equilising draw at home to Leicester was more what I had half-expected and hoped for.
I would love to see Pards take a few gambles on Saturday and play with plenty of adventure. We have shown that we can buzz a bit going forward and attack may well be the best form of defence on Saturday, irrespective of who's in the back four. Either way, I can't wait. Who's for a song?
Show me the way to Sel-hurst park!
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