Patrick Vieira wants to see more of a “killing instinct” from his array of attacking players at Crystal Palace.
Wilfried Zaha returned from the Africa Cup of Nations to score a fine equaliser in Wednesday’s 1-1 draw at Norwich but also missed a penalty which would have secured three points for the visitors.
Vieira had previously called for more consistency from the Ivory Coast international and that was laid bare during a topsy-turvy performance at Carrow Road.
But the Eagles boss is also keen for his other attacking players to do their bit, with on-loan Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher still topping the scoring charts for Palace this season with seven goals.
“Yes, we have players who are capable of scoring goals and creating chances but that is not enough – we need to have this killing instinct to score these goals,” said Vieira.
“The attacking force, the way we play and you see the situations we are creating, in both areas in offensive and defensive we need to be more ruthless.
“That will come with experience and playing together and when you look at how we improve from the first game of the season, I think we are a better team.
“We still have some parts of our game that need to improve to win football matches, we are conscious of that and my responsibility will be to put more emphasis on those details to allow us to win football matches.”
Palace make the short journey to Brentford on Saturday having won just one of their 11 Premier League games on the road under Vieira, with only Everton taking a fewer percentage of their points from away games.
Zaha is likely to keep his place in the side but Vieira also wants his team-mates to understand the role they play in giving the forward a chance to reach his maximum ability.
“I have said he has to score more because he has the ability to do so. He is a player who I believe, with his ability, can create more and score more,” said the former Arsenal midfielder.
“But that isn’t going to be about him by himself, he needs the team around him to perform to create those chances or put him in a situation where he can express his talent.
“When I say he can do more, it is not about him as an individual, it is about him using the quality of the players he has around him as well.
“The way we play, the chances that we are creating, to be more decisive. He has the ability to do it but the way we play as a team will allow him to do it more often.”
Zaha may have scuffed his penalty well wide at Norwich but he said he would be ready to take the next spot-kick awarded to Palace, a sentiment echoed by his boss.
“People always remember the last penalty but when you look at his record on penalties it has been really good so there is no reason why he should change,” added Vieira.
