Crystal Palace caretaker manager Paddy McCarthy believes new boss Oliver Glasner will have seen plenty to excite him in the Eagles’ battling 1-1 draw at Everton.
Hours after being confirmed as the successor to veteran Roy Hodgson, who stood down earlier in the day, Glasner was watching from the stand at Goodison Park as Palace claimed a point on Monday night.
McCarthy, who took charge of the side along with fellow assistant Ray Lewington after Hodgson was taken ill last week, feels the team being handed over is in fine shape.
McCarthy said: “He’s seen a team with spirit and commitment to the cause. It’s a good point in the right direction at a difficult place to come.
“I’m sure he will take a lot of positives from the game and I bet he can’t wait to come and work with the lads.”
Glasner, 49, inherits a side 15th in the Premier League and hoping to avoid being pulled into a relegation battle after a poor run of form.
The Austrian led Eintracht Frankfurt to Europa League glory in 2022 and McCarthy feels he is a strong appointment.
The Irishman said: “He is a manager with great pedigree, a European winner. He is coming into a group that I’m sure he will enjoy working with.
“It is a positive move for the football club and one I’m sure will excite the fans.”
McCarthy revealed he had not yet had the chance to meet Glasner and admitted he did not know if he himself had a future at Selhurst Park.
He said: “It was just announced as we arrived for our pre-match meal. I’ve not had chance to meet him.
“It has been a whirlwind couple of days. I’ve had no communication about myself and my future.”
In terms of the game, a dull encounter was lit up when Jordan Ayew broke the deadlock with a superb long-range strike after 66 minutes.
Everton responded well and their pressure eventually paid off when Amadou Onana headed an equaliser six minutes from time.
McCarthy said: “We created some great situations, Jordan took his goal well. We knew the questions that would be asked coming here.
“I thought we defended resolutely for the majority of the game but unfortunately we couldn’t hang on.”
Everton manager Sean Dyche bemoaned the number of chances the hosts wasted but nevertheless felt the point, which lifted the Toffees out of the bottom three, was a valuable one.
Dyche said: “First half it looked like we were off and they were a side where the new manager was sitting in the stand. They had a bit of edge about them and they played well.
“We weren’t miles off but we weren’t brave enough in possession, were too timid, played backwards too much.
“They scored a good goal, a clean strike, but I thought the mentality then was good to get on the front foot. We certainly did enough to get a point and it was a fine delivery and a fine finish.
“It’s another point on the board and we’ve just popped out of the relegation zone but there were chances – we’ve got to start taking them. There were a couple of golden chances we didn’t take.”
Tedesco 'still hurt' by France defeat at Euro 2024
Domenico Tedesco says Belgium are still hurting after their Euro 2024 exit to France as they prepare to meet them in the Nations League on Monday.
Belgium suffered a 1-0 defeat to France in the round of 16 at the Euros, conceding an 85th-minute Jan Vertonghen own goal to send them crashing out after a poor tournament.
It was a tight affair when the sides met in July, with both only managing two shots on target, though France's came from 19 overall attempts compared to Belgium's five.
And Tedesco would rather forget about that meeting as he targets a more positive result this time around.
"At the European Championship, it was a close one against France. We could have won too,” Tedesco told reporters.
"France were a bit better, they deserved to win, but we also had our chances. It would be a lie if I said that match is forgotten. It still hurts. I often think about the European Championship, but you also must look ahead.
"Looking back is not always the best solution. We have to be ambitious; it's been a long time since we beat France in a competitive match with commitment. Let us perform well, and then the rest will follow."
Tedesco also admitted that Belgium over-prepared for that meeting with France, with their adjustments to the game plan proving detrimental.
"The last match at the European Championship was different from the one now, it was a knockout match," he added.
"We learned that we adjusted our own plans a bit too much then. You always have to analyse your opponent, but we adjusted excessively."
Clarke believes Scotland 'deserved something' following defeat to Portugal
Scotland boss Steve Clarke has declared that his side "deserved something" from their Nations League clash with Portugal after losing 2-1 thanks to a late Cristiano Ronaldo goal.
Scott McTominay gave Scotland an early lead after seven minutes, but Portugal fought back through goals from Bruno Fernandes and Ronaldo to take all three points in Group A1.
Ronaldo's goal came in the 88th minute and was his 901st career goal.
It leaves Scotland on their longest-ever winless run as they remain without a win in their last eight competitive games in all competitions, but Clarke feels they should not have left Lisbon empty-handed.
"I'm disappointed to lose a game where it looked, for a large period, we would get something from it," he told the BBC.
"I'm really disappointed for my players because I think they deserved to get something from the game.
"If you ignore the results, [there are a lot of positives], but we're professional, so it's disappointing.
"We played well in these two games, but we don't have anything to show for it. I've told the players not to be too hard on themselves. They have to understand the work that we're doing."
Scotland did well to prevent Portugal from getting any further sight at goal, defending a total of 26 shots during the match with seven ending up on target.
The 16 shots the Scots had to defend in the opening 45 minutes were the most they have faced in a first-half since October 2012 when Belgium also let loose 16 efforts.
"With the amount of balls that go into the box, you know one of them can go in the back of the net and that's what happened to us," added Clarke.
"When you bring quality players from the bench like Roberto [Martinez] can do, you always know there's a risk, but I felt we handled it well.
"We'll go away and analyse these games, and hopefully, we can give the lads a few pointers for the games next month, which don't get any easier."
Gamechanger Ronaldo was brought on at half-time by Portugal manager Roberto Martinez, a move that was well thought through and had the desired effect.
"Ronaldo did 17 sprints against Croatia. He is the player who made the most sprints. So we need to protect the players. One more game in 72 hours is impossible to have a physical performance [equal]," Martinez explained.
"The question was whether Ronaldo played the first half and left or came in and finished the game. That was the decision.
"He is an asset to the national team. When he comes in, if the [team] needs goals, Cris gives energy and a feeling to the fans. The stadium is different.
"If Cris leaves, it's the opposite and facilitates what the opponent would like to do when playing away from home in Portugal."
De la Fuente insists Spain are doing 'something important' for the country
Luis de la Fuente believes Spain are doing "something important" for the country after they beat Switzerland 4-1 in the Nations League.
La Roja made an underwhelming start to Group A4 in a 0-0 draw with Serbia but looked back to their best on Sunday.
Fabian Ruiz's brace was sandwiched between goals from Joselu and Ferran Torres, with Spain able to clinch their first win of this season's tournament, despite Robin Le Normand's 20th-minute sending-off.
De la Fuente was particularly impressed with how his players dug in after going down to 10 men, hailing them for a resilient performance.
"I feel like we are doing something important for a country, that people identify with this group of players," De la Fuente said after the game.
"We grow from humility and sacrifice as a team. I am proud of this group of players, which never ceases to surprise me.
"If there's one thing I like to boast about, it's the pride I've always felt for this team. When these circumstances happen, one feels more proud, but to highlight a group of players that is a team, not a national team.
"This team has plenty of self-esteem and humility because what they are doing is historic.
"With 10 men, we have been able to interpret the game in a masterful way. I am very proud of this team and every day we see that we continue to grow and that we can improve."
Spain finished the game with just 33.7% possession, understandably low after having just 10 players on the pitch for 70 minutes.
They had nine shots overall, compared to Switzerland's 20, but got eight of theirs on target while the hosts only mustered three.
De la Fuente was particularly impressed by Joselu's performance, with the former Real Madrid man setting the tone from the front.
"I'm very happy for everyone, especially for Joselu because he deserves it," De la Fuente added.
"He had the best game since he's been with us, he did everything we asked of him, both when we had 11 and when we were down to 10.
"We were playing a very complete game. Pedri was playing a great game, but we understood that in order to have the chances we had, we had to make that change.
"We felt very powerful. With 10 players, we played the perfect game, we defended very well, we had a great goalkeeper..."
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