Everton knocked Crystal Palace out of the FA Cup at Goodison Park on Wednesday night.
Former Leeds United player Danny Mills criticized Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson for his conservative substitutions against Everton on Wednesday night, accusing the Eagles of being eliminated from the FA Cup with a ‘whimper’.
The two Premier League sides rescheduled their third-round match at Goodison Park after drawing 0-0 at Selhurst Park earlier this month. Again, there was little separating the two teams, with a sensational Andre Gomes free kick just before halftime securing a 1-0 Toffees victory.
With 25 minutes remaining in the second half, Hodgson made the unusual move of replacing important player Eberechi Eze with Matheus França. The Eagles manager was booed by travelling supporters at Goodison Park, who yelled “you don’t know what you’re doing”.
Former defender Mills, who was commentating on talkSPORT, also criticized Hodgson. He stated, “I understand Roy Hodgson is conservative by nature, but you’re 1-0 down in a cup match with 25 minutes to go away from home. Just throw caution to the wind, right? You might as well lose 2-0 than lose 1-0 and leave with a whimper.”
As the game came to an end, the commentator went on to say, “They haven’t really changed style or tact. Palace do not appear to be a team chasing the game.
Mills, who previously played for Charlton Athletic and Manchester City, also criticized Hodgson for replacing Odsonne Édouard with Jean-Philippe Mateta rather than deploying both strikers at the same time.
Crystal Palace is failed to score this year, and only Burnley and Sheffield United have fewer goals than the Eagles’ 22. The London club has been linked with forwards in the January transfer window, including Arsenal’s Eddie Nketiah, but the Gunners refuse to trade their star without a replacement.
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EDDIE GRAY: LEEDS IS EVERYTHING
We spoke with the Leeds United icon about his favorite memories at the club.
As part of our ‘My LUFC’ series this season, we spoke with Leeds United great Eddie Gray about everything from his favourite goal to what the club means to him.
Gray, a one-club man, played 579 games for Leeds, scoring 69 goals, and was named the Whites’ third greatest player in history, after only Billy Bremner and John Charles.
Gray, who played primarily as a winger, won numerous local and European medals, including the First Division (twice), FA Cup, League Cup, Charity Shield, and Inter-Cities Fairs Cup thrice.
Fans lovingly referred to him as ‘Mr Leeds’, and his manager Don Revie once famously stated, “When Eddie Gray plays on snow, he leaves no footprints.”
Favourite Leeds United game?
“Looking back, there are some games when you believe you performed exceptionally well and others where you clearly did not.
“But the game I remember most fondly was my first, when I made my debut at the age of seventeen. It was against Sheffield Wednesday at Elland Road, which meant a lot to a Scot to make his debut on New Year’s Day.
“So if people ask me, if I had to pick one game, it would be that one; it wouldn’t be a cup final, it wouldn’t be any of the European games, just that first game. That’s something you don’t forget.
Favourite Leeds United goal?
“Well, my favorite goal was when I scored two goals against Burnley in one game, and everyone talks about the second. My favorite goal was the first, because it required me to make a quick decision.
“I needed to control the ball faster, so I took a quick peak up and noticed the goalkeeper was around six yards off his line. It wasn’t much more off his line, and when I hit the chip over him, I needed to be precise.
“The second goal is what everyone talks about, but it just occurred. That was just instinct, that objective, since people were approaching and you were trying to avoid them. Suddenly, you find yourself in a position where you have the opportunity to strike a ball toward goal. And that is how it happened.
Favorite Leeds United trophy?
“Probably the 1968/69 championship.
“Our first trophy, the League Cup, which we won by defeating Arsenal, served as a trigger for the squad to go on to win other trophies and compete in major competitions.
“But winning the league for the first time, especially at Anfield, is something I will never forget. It’s a terrific venue to go and win the league; it was difficult to play there because the audience was so supportive.
“As soon as the game was over, we were heading away because you were at Anfield, they were one of your key rivals, and you had just won the championship. Don, on the other hand, says “walk to the Kop, they’ll give you a great reception”.
“So, all of the boys were apprehensive, so we started walking to the Kop, which was at the other end of the pitch. We crossed the halfway point, and the entire Kop began yelling “Champions!” And they chanted that all the way down, and we got a tremendous reception. So that was a wonderful time.”
Favourite Leeds United teammate?
“Peter Lorimer was my roommate, and we grew up together. He was a year older than me and also arrived from Scotland. I was also good pals with Mick Bates. “We were a very close unit.”
What Does Leeds United Mean to You?
“It means everything.
“When I was 14, a scout came over to my parents’ house. One night, while I was playing with the Glasgow Schoolboys, he approached my parents and said, “My name is John Barr, I’m a scout for Leeds United in Scotland, and I’d like your son to go down for the weekend.”
“My dad came to me and he says “There’s a scout for a club called Leeds United.” And I say, who? I’d never heard of them.
“I was a Celtic supporter and had grew up as a Celtic fan. That was the only team, I wanted to play for. Leeds United had never won anything.
“So I decided to travel down for a weekend as a holiday. There were a few bigger clubs interested, including Celtic, but I decided to travel to Leeds for the weekend.
“So I boarded on a train at Glasgow Central and headed to Leeds. I was surprised since I had gone to a few clubs in England, but when I got off, Don Revie was waiting for me.
“He took me to a motel, picked me up the next day, and drove me to the training facility. All of the trialists were in the hut in Fullerton Park, waiting, when Don entered.
“He pulled me out of the group and told me, “You’re training with me today,” and then he brought me to practice with the first team. It was snow and ice on the ground, so the first thing I did, which I remember to this day, was pick up the ball and go up to a big center half named Jack Charlton.
“Do you know what I did?” I sent the ball through his legs. Then, as I was racing around the opposite side of him, he kicked me up into the air, and I was lying in the snow. He goes on to scream, “Don’t do that to me again, you little, you know what, like Jack was.”
