Patrick Vieira has revealed the Crystal Palace setup that has helped him enjoy a successful first season at Selhurst Park, including a strong relationship with Sporting Director Dougie Freedman.
“The support of the Chairman and Dougie is massively important,” he said. “There is really good communication through the football club that allows me to express myself as a manager.
“The success is about the players performing at the level we know they can do. We have a good platform to allow them to express themselves.
“This is one of the strengths of the football club: the Sporting Director who played at a high level, who understands the game, who understands the club and understands the demands of the fans.”
Vieira says that he and the recruitment staff enjoy a strong relationship, which helped him bring in talented young players like Marc Guéhi, Conor Gallagher and Michael Olise last summer.
“The scouting people that [Dougie] has around him, it has been a good success because of the players we bring in,” Vieira explained. “Not just on the field but off the field as well, they are really matching with the football club and that has been a success.
“It’s just about understanding the need and identifying the profile that we need, [and then] the scouting department finding those players and trying to make it happen.
“It’s not easy – it takes a lot of time, energy and hard work. It’s important for us, as the technical department, to notify the profile that we want and how we play the game.”
Such clarity can help young players who are already at the club develop, as has been the case with Tyrick Mitchell this season, who stepped into the left-back slot vacated by Patrick van Aanholt.
“When I arrived, the conversation that I had with Dougie and the Chairman was always clear,” Vieira said. “Tyrick had the potential to be the first choice in that position, and we wanted to give him that position.
“It was a really good decision, and he didn’t let us down at all. Of course, there are still parts of the game he needs to improve to be more complete as a player. But I’m really happy with how he has been doing at the moment.”
Vieira already has his eye on the next talented youngsters who could make the step up to the first-team, including Tayo Adaramola and Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, who have both made their senior debuts this season.
“They will have a good idea about their potential and what they can do,” the manager said. “They have spent a lot of time in training with the first-team, and have played some games in the FA Cup and the league.
“We need to test those players. When to do it, that will be the question, but we need to see what they are capable of doing.
“[Jes] is a special talent. He’s got the potential to perform at a high level. As a football club we need to create a pathway to allow him to go to the next step. That may be him staying with us or him going on loan, but it’s still too early to make decision.
“We will look and see, and try and to make the best decision to allow him to keep progressing.”
With six games remaining this season, Vieira is keen for Palace to go into the summer break on a high rather than letting their season peter out. To that end he is aiming to improve consistency.
“Keep demanding, keeping the pressure on the players,” he said of his message to the squad. “We knew this was something we have improve. This is my first season, and there is a lack of consistency in performances – that shows how difficult it is to build that.
“We have to be really demanding in everyday training about what we are doing to prepare that game at the weekend. This is something that has to be a part of who we want to be at the football club.
“Professional pride is something that's massively important. It is important for players to understand if you want to build from what we have been doing, this is something that has to be consistent.
“We can’t choose when to turn up and when we don’t turn up. We want to build something. We want to be a winner. To be a winner, this is something you have to put on yourselves every day.
“I’m not going to accept players doing less in training than in the first week [of the season]. I’m not going to accept players giving up in games. This is not who we are as a football club.
“I can guarantee you that we will keep training and keep the intensity that we have done so far.”
