Crystal Palace defender Joel Ward has highlighted the changes made by manager Roy Hodgson since he replaced Patrick Vieira.

Ward was speaking after victory over Bournemouth on Saturday.

He said, “We knew that we were in for a tough task against Bournemouth. They've stepped up in recent months and there's a reason why they've got the points on the board, so we knew it wasn't going to be easy.

“But when we're firing on all cylinders, and when we start to get the ball moving, playing with tempo the way we do, for teams it's hard to stop us.

“He [Roy Hodgson] is simplifying the message and bringing clarity to players on the pitch positionally, giving freedom to the lads to just go out there and express themselves, and we know we can back it up from a solid foundation.

“We make sure we can continue to sustain attacks. I think that's a huge thing: part of our game right now is making sure we keep the ball in the final third and put the opponents under pressure and with the likes of Ebs, Michael, Jordan [Ayew] and Wilf [Zaha], or whoever it may be up top, we know we can hurt teams."