Palace boss Hodgson explains why his side were unlucky against Newcastle United

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson has insisted that his side were unfortunate following their 1-0 defeat against Newcastle on Saturday.

The Eagles were seeking further points after opening their account for this season during their surprise victory against Chelsea last weekend.

They however were consigned to defeat late on after Mikel Merrino managed to find the back of the net for the Magpies.  The loss means that Palace now have three points from their opening nine fixtures.

Unless things drastically improve in the near future, it could prove to be very difficult for them to avoid relegation this season.

The Eagles have also now failed to score during their last seven top flight games which is their worst such run in history.

Hodgson said after the defeat: “There were some very good performances from us in particular. The quality of our play was very good.

“We needed more than a goal to take one point and set plays are always a problem. It was unfortunate as our player got his head to the ball but headed it against the Newcastle bloke.

“I cannot criticise our performance. From the first minute to the last it was everything I expected and under normal circumstances would have got us a result.”