DREAM TEAM managers should always expect the unexpected.
When news broke of Roy Hodgson’s return to Crystal Palace following Patrick Vieira’s dismissal, few would have predicted that the Eagles would be instantly transformed into one of the most dynamic attacking teams in the Premier League.
But that’s exactly what has happened.
An unlikely friendship but one blossoming nonetheless
The 75-year-old tactician has a wealth of knowledge but his managerial tenures at the back end of his career have generally been defined by pragmatism.
Even the most optimistic season ticket holders at Selhurst Park would merely have shrugged and declared: “Well, it might not be pretty but Roy will probably get the job.”
Not only is the ex-England coach getting the job done with three consecutive victories having all but saved the south Londoners from relegation already, the football is no less than beautiful.
Hodgson’s second stint began with a 2-1 win over Leicester, continued with a swaggering 5-1 victory at Elland Road, and extended with a comfortable 2-0 win away to Southampton on Saturday.
Eberechi Eze (£3m) scored both the visitors’ goals at St Mary’s to claim the Star Man award and bank 18 points in one fell swoop.
It was the 24-year-old’s biggest haul of the Dream Team campaign and confirmation of the midfielder’s uplift since the change in dugout personnel.
Eze has 92 points overall
Eze has now produced 33 points in three games under Hodgson, whereas he mustered just nine from his last 13 appearances for Vieira.
This prosperous little run has featured three goals and two Star Man awards, making him one of the most in-form assets in the game over the last three Game Weeks.
At the time of writing, the ex-QPR man is the best-performing midfielder of Game Week 30 – he’s five points clear of Martin Odegaard (£3.8m) and Harry Wilson (£1.7m).
A talented dribbler, Eze has registered over a third of his total points since Hodgson’s return and if Palace are going to keep playing their way to mid-table safety will such panache then more than a few Dream Team bosses may feel he’s worth a punt.
A man in sparkling formGETTY
Eze features in just 0.7% of teams right now and is therefore a massive differential option.
And he can’t have asked for more friendly fixtures, he faces Everton, Wolves and West Ham before the end of the month which will make it six consecutive games against teams below Palace in the table.