Learning curve for Burley

After arguably the most extraordinary summer in Crystal Palace Football Club's history, it finally appears the Club has returned to having a sole purpose - playing football. There is no longer any feeling of needing to sign new players, or searching for a new manager, and there are certainly no financial worries.

Instead, the only thing that the Palace forums are talking about, is the football, and, perhaps unsurprisingly given the nature and fickleness of the modern day football fan, the views on the football and players is mixed. There are those who, like me, realise that you cannot completely change a squad and win the league overnight. Then there are those who feel that it is Calvin Andrew's fault (I can see where they are coming from, but that is a whole new post.) while some are saying that Burley should be sacked, although this is quite definitely the minority, and rightly so.

But I can already see a trend developing. At home when I have seen Palace, even when we haven't won, we have played some very good football and come very close. Against Leicester we were incredible in the first half, and the 3 goals we scored showed that, and against Portsmouth our wingers, Cadogan and Djilali, along with hat-trick hero James Vaughan were unplayable, and a great night was only tarnished by a communication error between Gardner and Speroni, but it was a Tuesday night, so I think we got off quite lightly! And against Burnley, despite what the papers say, we were very good defensively and came close a number of times, not forgetting the player Neil Danns thinks should be Argentina's number 1, Julian Speroni, who pulled off his usual array of world-class stops.

Yet away from home we are afraid to shoot, afraid to pass, and invite pressure. Even against Reading, not the best of sides with a poor referee, we had about one shot on goal and were, if I'm brutally honest, shocking.

However, George Burley is a very experienced manager, and the squad he has built is a credit to him, and surely from here the only way is up. There are so many weaknesses in our side, but this is not because of lack of quality - we have that in abundance and, for me, we have one of the top 5 squads in the league - but because of the lack of time they have had together. I have never understood how a team can be so confident at home, but so timid away, and I am sure this is a problem Burley is all too aware of, and I am certain that given time, results away from SE25 will come.

For me, away games at Swansea and Preston will be the biggest test for us, and I believe that, even if we lose 5-0 in both, Burley will take a lot away from the two games, and we play so differently home and away that it should be relatively to adjust team-talks and tactics in order to improve results.

We won't be getting 3 points every week any time soon, but in a way that is a good thing, because this way Burley gets the chance to prepare for if and when we do. Burley has a steep learning curve, but this is nothing new for him, and I am sure he relishes the challenge of moving Palace up the Football League.

Gibbo