Alan Pardew has told his Crystal Palace troops to forget about their back-to-back defeats and resume their quest for a top-10 Premier League finish this season.
Son Heung-Min grabbed a 68th-minute winner as the Eagles went down 1-0 at Tottenham Hotspur this afternoon to compound a testing week, having lost to a last-minute goal at home to Manchester City last weekend.
Palace were second in the table heading into the international break, with a 2-1 win at Chelsea their flagship victory, and Pardew says that he cannot allow them to under-achieve and finish in the bottom half.
"I don't want to be in the mid-table, I told the players after the game it's not for me," he told reporters during a post-match press conference.
"I'm an experienced manager, I know a good side when I see one and this is a good side. Therefore we need to tighten up in certain areas, be stronger in the mind and we can achieve a great season.
"That, for us, would be a top-10 finish, maybe higher than that, and a cup competition. They should be our goals, particularly after these first six games and the way we've gone about the opposition in the victories and defeats."
Pardew's men are eighth in the standings.
Shane Callaghan
