Under fire De Boer refusing to change Palace tactics

Cape Town - Frank de Boer remains committed to Crystal Palace’s current style of play despite their poor run of results, citing a conversation with Louis van Gaal as motivation.

The London club have not only failed to log a single point from their three opening matches of the new Premier League season, they have also yet to find the back of the net in a disastrous start to their campaign.

Regardless, coach Frank de Boer will not adjust the team’s strategy, saying that he believes it is on the cusp of paying dividends, an approach endorsed by fellow Dutchman Louis van Gaal.

"I spoke to him before I came to Crystal Palace. 'How's the Premier League? What about assistants? Did you bring your own staff?' Those kind of questions you're going to ask," De Boer told reporters.

"The only thing he regretted: he played 3-4-3 in pre-season, and then he lost the first game and changed it to 4-3-3. He regretted that, and that's why you have to stick to your own philosophy,” he continued.

"He did the same at Barcelona when he put Rivaldo in the number 10 position; suddenly the team wasn't the team anymore, and we went down in performance.

"Always stick to your own philosophy: that's a very important lesson," the former Ajax Amsterdam boss added.

"As a manager you always have more pressure," he continued. "As a player I was nervous before games, you need tension to perform, and when the referee whistled, it was over, I was focused on the game. As a manager, you don't have that influence on the game itself.

"I want players that recognise what they have to do in certain situations. They have to recognise 'Okay, now we have to do this, now we have to do that'. That takes time. Automatically, so I don't have to shout from the bench. All those things.

"After six months, you'll see you're getting more back in every game. It always takes time. I was a youth coach, and after six months it was 'Hey, now they're playing the way I think they have to play'.

"Continue what you believe in. That's a process, and it takes time," the 47-year old added.