Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson says they'll need their fans tonight against Manchester United.

Roy Hodgson's injury-hit side have slipped back into the ­bottom three after a run of five games without a win – and have never beaten the Reds in the ­Premier League era.

“We are going to be playing against a very good player and, if we give him a lot of time and space, and a lot of opportunities to do the things he is good at, he is likely to succeed," said Eagles boss Hodgson.

“We know he can create goals. We know he is a very busy, hard-working player, who is not going to give up ­easily. I can't make any ­comparisons about his style at United and his style at Arsenal.

“I don't follow them that closely. What I see of United is on Match of the Day, and you know from Match of the Day there is as much talking and analysis as what you see from the excerpts that are edited from the game.

“Unfortunately, for us, he's one of many good players that United possess, so life for us could ­perhaps have been a bit easier if he was their only good player. But he is far from that.

“My hope would be to see the place rocking, because that would mean we would be ­buzzing around the United ­penalty area a few times, as that's what gets the fans going."