Crystal Palace midfielder Joe Ledley praised the impact of Alan Pardew after the Eagles beat Tottenham 2-1 at Selhurst Park on Saturday.
The London derby was Pardew’s first Premier League match in charge, and his team came from a goal behind to record their first league victory since November.
Ledley, who won the penalty which initiated Palace’s comeback, hailed the influence of the newly appointed Selhurst boss.
“He’s a fantastic manager to work with,” Ledley said.
“He’s only come in for a week but you can see the things he wants us to do and he’s been brilliant on and off the pitch.
“When we played against Dover you could see things starting to work, and to go out there [against Tottenham] and perform like we did was fantastic.”
He added: “He’s given us a licence to play and it’s good to watch, it’s entertaining football.
"It’s always nice when you play some good football and win as well, that was a bonus today.”
While Pardew was eventually triumphant on his return to Selhurst Park, it was Spurs who took the lead through Harry Kane’s neat finish shortly after half-time.
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But Palace were offered a route back into the game when Benjamin Stambouli felled Ledley inside the box.
Referee Anthony Taylor pointed to the spot and Dwight Gayle scored the subsequent penalty to begin the hosts’ comeback, which was completed when Jason Puncheon struck an 80th minute winner.
But even Ledley admitted he was unsure whether a penalty was the correct decision.
The 27-year-old said: “It was a 50-50, to be fair I don’t really know.
"I don’t know if he’s touched it or not but I’ve managed to put my foot in and poked it away, but I’m not sure what happened. But things like that you need to take.
“We needed the points, results didn’t go our way today so we needed it and it was a great result.
“It’s taken us a while to get a win but we finally got it and it feels good.”
Brilliant: Alan Pardew has been backed by Palace midfidler Joe Ledley
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