Sam Allardyce has brought in a sports psychologist to work with his Crystal Palace players as he attempts to tackle their Selhurst Park stage-fright. The Eagles are currently 19th in the Premier League ahead of Saturday's trip to Stoke having lost nine of their 12 home games so far this season. A 4-0 thrashing at the hands of fellow relegation candidates Sunderland last weekend saw home fans turn on the Palace players - with chanting and confrontations making for a toxic atmosphere inside the ground. The loss to Allardyce's former club means Palace are two points from safety as they head to the Bet365 Stadium and led to chairman Steve Parish holding a meeting with the players after the game.
Allardyce himself then dragged the squad in at 7am on Sunday morning to go over the reasons behind the defeat. And now the 62-year-old has welcomed renowned sports psychologist and former Oldham midfielder Lee Richardson into his coaching set-up to help lift his squad. "This week I employed Lee Richardson, who is not only a trained sports psychologist but also an ex-player, an ex-coach and an ex-manager," said Allardyce. "I just feel we've have to try to help the lads to focus mentally. If we can do that then they will perform better. "You play at this level and your mind has to work in a very efficient way. At the moment with the bit of fear we have at home, they're losing their concentration when they should be focussed."
Allardyce has long advocated the use of psychology in football but believes some within the game, particularly English players, still have an issue with the approach. "It has been a massive area in my life for the last 20, 22 years," he said. "I have sat down with three or four personally that have worked with me and made me a better manager. "Made me cope better and helped me make better decisions so I have just given the lads the opportunity to experience the same and see if it helps them like it has helped me. "(It is a) typical English idea that a sports psychologist is for weak people. Not at all, whatsoever. A sports psychologist is like a first team coach or assistant manager. It is there to promote positivity and find your best way of delivering on the field. "There is still a stigma. All I can say I I've been personally using them since probably 1999. "That was for me another string to our bow behind the scenes, that helps players deal with the pressures that they are under today.
"And the pressure is a great pressure to have, performing under the pressure of the Premier League is a great pressure to have but sometimes when things are not going quite right, then you need a bit of help." The former England boss may be taking on advice from the newly-appointed Richardson, but he does not intend to start listening to the opinion of Palace fans. Allardyce has led his side to victory in just one of the seven Premier League games he has overseen since replacing Alan Pardew at the helm.
Goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey has emerged as something of a scapegoat among Palace fans but - after a local newspaper poll found only five per cent of respondents want the Wales international to remain first choice for the remainder of the campaign - Allardyce defended his decision to pick him. "It's not relevant for me in any way, shape or form what the fans want me to do," he said. "If you ask 10 different fans they'll pick 10 different teams. The chairman will pick a different team to me, so will (assistant manager) Sammy Lee, (coach) Martyn Margetson.
"I need to pick the team and have the final say and then we all support that. While the fans are rightly airing their opinions on who they think should or shouldn't play, it is my job to pick what I consider to be the best team and not be influenced by outside sources."
