Powell: Once you win a couple games and start believing, you win more
Speaking to Palace TV+ after securing progression to the next phase of the Premier League Cup on Friday, Under-21s head coach Darren Powell revealed a key mindset the players carry into their games and beyond.
The side are currently on a nine-game unbeaten run since returning from the winter break, with six wins and three draws. A key factor to this has been not only a strong mindset, but also the shape the side plays as Powell explains: “We were playing in a shape that has complemented us.
“The boys know: no matter what shape you play, it's the commitment from the individuals within it. They've been committed within it. They've been showing great character in games, where they've come from behind and kept going. That's something that we're kind of playing on.
“The mentality and character of the group, because they are a good set of guys and they work hard every day, we just need to translate that into games. As you know, confidence is a key thing.
“Once you win a couple of games and you believe in what you're doing, you can win more games. I think that's kind of helped us.”
The side is building on success against Wolverhampton Wanderers, where they put three past them with no reply to make the Premier League International Cup semi-finals for the second successive season, and also a turnaround in league performances that have seen them climb up the table.
“Yeah, [mentality has shone throughout when we compete in cup competitions]. We spoke about it earlier in the week in terms of the International Cup. We got to the final and obviously we didn't win, but knockout stages, it's a one-off game. Who plays best on the day wins.
“The boys want to go on a run and they've shown it in the games. I've said to them, let's not let the season just roll out and just be league games. Let's have something to look forward to [at the end of the league phase] and hopefully we can look forward to something.”
The Premier League 2 has a new format this season, which sees the initial stage conclude in late April before the top 16 sides face each other in a play-off scenario.
On the game against Leicester itself, Powell said: “[It was a] game of two halves. First half, we were good in terms of setting the press and getting after them.
“Second half, obviously, they had nothing to lose so they committed players forward. For us, it was kind of a shadow of our true selves. I said to the boys that the game on Monday [Wolves] took a lot out of them and you can see in the performance, we were giving the ball away a bit too cheaply. If you give the ball away, you can get punished.”
Finally, turning his attention to January signing Craig Farquhar, Powell was full of praise for the centre-back: “He's a good defender, [Craig Farquhar].
“We've seen him before we signed him and he's going to be a good addition. It's not been easy for him in terms of intensity of games and where he's come from, but he's been adapting well.
“He's been on the grass and he can defend the box really well, which we need. He's going to be a good addition for us and we've seen in his performances as well.”