Crystal Palace face Tottenham in the Premier League and Roy Hodgson needs to drop Jean Philippe-Mateta for the match.
The forward has not impressed lately.
So, why should Roy Hodgson drop Jean Philippe-Mateta and who should Crystal Palace start instead? Let’s take a look…
Jean-Philippe Mateta should be dropped for Crystal Palace match
Palace have struggled in attack this season. A huge reason for this has been due to the fact that key attackers Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze have been injured.
The pair will still be injured for the match against Spurs, alongside a couple of other players. This makes the game against the current Premier League leaders even harder.
Mateta has looked good at points this season, but mainly from the bench. He picked up two assists against Wolves as substitute, whilst his other assist in the division came against Aston Villa, again from the bench.
The Frenchman, who scored a hat trick against Plymouth in the Carabao Cup, is yet to score in the Premier League this season. Last season, he only managed two goals in the Premier League. With Palace only scoring three goals at home this season, they need to try a different option. Mateta is simply not providing anything in attack.
Roy Hodgson needs to change the attack vs Spurs
Sadly, Mateta is just not influencing games much. With Eze and Olise out, many may wonder what Hodgson can actually do to change tactics at this current stage.
There are definitely a couple of options. Matheus Franca finally made his Palace debut last weekend following a long-term injury. Despite this, it feels like it would be a risk to start him against Spurs after little experience so far in England.
Jordan Ayew and Odsonne Edouard will both start. If you want to get the best out of Edouard, you do not play him on the left wing. He already has four goals this season and is the top goalscorer. With this in mind, you shouldn’t sacrifice his strengths for an out-of-form forward in Mateta.
Against Newcastle, Edouard was pushed out to the left-wing to make way for Mateta up top. Edouard massively struggled in the match due to this. If you had to pick between the two up front right now it would definitely be Edouard.
The Eagles signed Mateta for £9m. He really needs to start providing more goals for the club if he wants to stay.
Instead, it would be good to see Hodgson give Rak-Sakyi a start after promising signs against both Newcastle and Nottingham Forest.
The 21-year-old academy product needs some game time. This would help continue his growth. He has a high ceiling. It feels like he should be trusted with the test of facing Spurs to see where he is at in terms of quality.
