Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton believes the club’s determination to challenge on every front will be tested during a demanding spell of fixtures, beginning with Sunday’s trip to Brighton, which kicks off at 14:00 BST.
Palace were narrowly beaten by Lyon on Thursday, but the schedule offers little time to reflect on that result. A Europa League meeting with BeÅŸiktaÅŸ follows the Brighton game, before Newcastle visit Selhurst Park and Palace face Fulham in the Carabao Cup before the end of October.
Wharton believes the squad has embraced the expectation of competing for honours. He pointed to manager Pierre Sage’s winning experience and said the club, supporters and players now share a stronger belief that Palace can add more trophies.
The midfielder, who has captained Palace in the absence of Dean Henderson, also reflected on last weekend’s Premier League victory over Nottingham Forest. He acknowledged that the performance was not the team’s best, but felt the side showed an important ability to secure three points in a difficult match. Wharton stressed that Palace must continue improving on the training ground rather than becoming satisfied with that result.
Wharton has featured in Palace’s last three meetings with Brighton, with the Eagles winning two and drawing one. He expects another difficult contest against opponents who have made a strong start and are scoring regularly. Palace’s attacking output has been encouraging under Sage, although Wharton also identified defensive improvement as an area of focus before the south-coast fixture.
