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Sam Allardyce reckons failure to beat Wanderers in the FA Cup tonight will show his side up to be “League One players.”
The Crystal Palace boss issued a bizarre warning to his fringe line-up as they prepare to face his former club at Selhurst Park.
Allardyce will make sweeping changes to the team beaten 3-0 by West Ham at the weekend, hinting that ex-Whites loan target Sullay Kaikai could be in line for a rare start after a loan spell at Brentford.
But in an attempt at reverse psychology, the former Bolton chief fired up his squad with words that have not gone down well in the opposite camp.
"If they don't win they are saying they are League One players, for me, not Premier League players," he said of his own team.
"It's a very good opportunity for squad players to play. Those saying 'get me in the team gaffer and I'll show you what I can do'.
"We've got several players who can't play through injury, two at the African Cup of Nations and we'll still be fielding an experienced side.
"There will be one player who starts who hasn't got much Premier League experience, he's been out on loan recently. The rest will be experienced."
By contrast, Parkinson hopes the challenge of a top-flight opponent can bring the best out of his own side.
“If I was a young player going into this game I’d be desperate to play against opponents who play each week in the Premier League and show what you are worth,” he told The Bolton News.
“You want to see how close you are. This is a different test because there are different demands away from home. You have to be mentally strong at Selhurst Park – it has, in the past, been difficult even for Premier League teams to get results there.
“If you are a younger player you want to show that maybe one day you belong in this company every week. But we have got senior players – and we’re not talking 35-year-olds but those in their best years – who have been at that level and want to show they can handle that again. It’s a great motivation for them.”
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The Crystal Palace boss issued a bizarre warning to his fringe line-up as they prepare to face his former club at Selhurst Park.
Allardyce will make sweeping changes to the team beaten 3-0 by West Ham at the weekend, hinting that ex-Whites loan target Sullay Kaikai could be in line for a rare start after a loan spell at Brentford.
But in an attempt at reverse psychology, the former Bolton chief fired up his squad with words that have not gone down well in the opposite camp.
"If they don't win they are saying they are League One players, for me, not Premier League players," he said of his own team.
"It's a very good opportunity for squad players to play. Those saying 'get me in the team gaffer and I'll show you what I can do'.
"We've got several players who can't play through injury, two at the African Cup of Nations and we'll still be fielding an experienced side.
"There will be one player who starts who hasn't got much Premier League experience, he's been out on loan recently. The rest will be experienced."
By contrast, Parkinson hopes the challenge of a top-flight opponent can bring the best out of his own side.
“If I was a young player going into this game I’d be desperate to play against opponents who play each week in the Premier League and show what you are worth,” he told The Bolton News.
“You want to see how close you are. This is a different test because there are different demands away from home. You have to be mentally strong at Selhurst Park – it has, in the past, been difficult even for Premier League teams to get results there.
“If you are a younger player you want to show that maybe one day you belong in this company every week. But we have got senior players – and we’re not talking 35-year-olds but those in their best years – who have been at that level and want to show they can handle that again. It’s a great motivation for them.”
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