With over 10 players out on loan across the Under-21s and first-team, fielding a competitive side can prove to be tricky in development football. This has not proven the case for Palace U21s, as they currently sit in third place in Premier League 2 Division 1 and have been competing for top spot throughout the season.
Paddy McCarthy on loans, identity and growth in the Academy
Crystal Palace Under-21s manager Paddy McCarthy sat down with Palace TV+ to discuss the season so far and how he creates a sense of identity within an ever-shifting side.
“We’ve had a lot of growth using the loan market,” explains McCarthy. “There may be a couple more going out this month as well - ones who we believe will benefit from that and grow from the challenge of a loan move.”
Killian Phillips, who recently joined Shrewsbury Town on loan until the end of the season, received high praise from Salop manager Steve Cotterill after making his debut for the club, an aspect McCarthy is proud of.
“I think my comment back to Albie [Aaron Wilbraham, Shrewsbury assistant manager] was that: ‘I knew you’d like him.’ He [Killian] epitomises everything we’re about as a group: honesty, hard work, endeavour. You know you can send these guys out and they’ll represent the club in the right light.
“Killian’s done that exactly the way I knew he would with his great debut. It’s up to him to go again now and find this consistency. We believe that he had good development here with us, and we thought the time was right for him to go out and dip his toe in the water and get into first-team football consistently.”
A key focus for McCarthy is maintaining a sense of identity within the squad. Whether it is a player on loan like Phillips, or they’re wearing the red and blue at home, they all have to adhere to a style and identity that defines Palace.
McCarthy identifies the style as: “Making it uncomfortable for the opposition. We like to play the game in the opposition’s half and play with control.
“I like to get our attacking players in possession in the final third. That’s always our objective - how can we get our attacking players, most exciting players, as much football and control in the final third, so they can go about their business.
“That can be by pressing, building up from the back, transitioning and turning the ball over, all the different ways. Obviously we like to press teams and nullify their attacking threat by pressing high as well. We’re an aggressive, high-pressing team, and a fast attacking team as well.”
Finally, looking ahead to the second part of the season, McCarthy has high hopes for his squad and the next set of players ready to make the step up.
“At any given time we could get a phone call [for a player to go out on loan] and you need to make a decision whether or not we believe that’s the right thing for their development. The guys who are not playing at the moment need to be prepared - if a player goes out on loan, are they ready to step in or perform?
“January is a unique month now, in terms of the transfer window - at any given time any player can be called upon. We’ll look at every individual case on merit and I imagine there might be one or two going out on loan, if the right club comes calling. We’re confident that the guys below can take the mantle of the lads that go out.
“We’ve managed to get a lot of lads out to decent league clubs in terms of Jes [Rak-Sakyi] and Banksy [Scott Banks] and everyone behind them has stepped up to the plate. We’re confident that we can do that again with the next wave of players coming through.
“We’ve got a fantastic facility here, we’ve got no excuses and we’ve got excellent talent in the building. We approach each game with confidence and understand that the ultimate goal is to get some of our talented players on the pitch at Selhurst Park.
“That’s what we’re working towards on a daily basis: hopefully one day creating the next Wilfried Zaha or Tyrick Mitchell.”