Sunday 21 October 2018 08:45, UK
Roy Hodgson believes Crystal Palace will need to produce a "special" performance if they are to take points from Everton at Goodison Park.
Palace travel to face the Toffees on Sunday, live on Sky Sports Premier League, having claimed just one point from their last three Premier League games.
Everton, meanwhile, head into the match on the back of consecutive wins over Fulham and Leicester, and Hodgson says his side will need to be at their very best to beat Marco Silva's men.
"Whenever you go to Goodison Park you're going to face a tough game," he said. "It is a very good crowd that they have there, a partisan crowd that really supports their team.
"It's an iconic stadium, one of the older ones that still has that smell, if you like, of English First Division football before the Premier League came onto the scene.
"Whatever state the club is supposed to be in, good or bad, it is always going to be a very difficult place to go and play.
"Of course we have the situation where our results have not been as good as we want to be. We are certainly more in need of points than Everton are at this moment.
"We realise that we're going to have to do something special up there if we want to come away from the game with a positive result."
Palace winger Wilfried Zaha is a doubt for the match after suffering a suspected adductor injury while away on international duty with Ivory Coast.
The Eagles have not won a competitive game without Zaha since September 2016, and Hodgson admits his side are a weaker outfit without the Ivorian.
"The fact is he is a very, very important player," said Hodgson.
"He is undoubtedly a player that can make things happen and win games off his own back, as he's done on one or two occasions when things have looked bleak.
"He has stepped up and produced a wonder goal, or a dribble or a run into the penalty box which has created a goal chance for us.
"Like all teams, when you've got a player who can make a difference - when he doesn't play it certainly weakens your chance of winning the game."
