Saturday 3 December 2016 08:31, UK
Crystal Palace's players let manager Alan Pardew down in last weekend's 5-4 defeat to Swansea City, says striker Christian Benteke.
Palace had trailed 3-1 late on at the Liberty Stadium on Saturday afternoon, before producing a great fightback to lead 4-3 heading into injury time.
However, an even more extraordinary last few minutes saw the Swans claim all three points in South Wales to leave Pardew's side 17th in the Premier League and only out of the drop zone courtesy of goal difference.
Benteke, who scored the visitors' fourth goal in the Principality, feels he and his team-mates could have done more to help lift the pressure on their beleaguered boss.
"He [Pardew] felt like we let him down and I felt the same because we are older professionals all with some experience, so at that moment we had to take responsibility and get something from that game," he said in an exclusive interview with Soccer Saturday.
"Like I said, it is unfair as the manager tries to put the best players on the pitch, so we have to perform.
"Football is a collective sport, so we win together and we lose together, so I won't blame anyone and as a player who is involved in the team, I will feel the same as anyone else in the dressing room."
The Belgium international, though, says Palace's players must now forget about their late collapse at Swansea and focus instead on Saturday afternoon's crucial clash with mid-table Southampton at Selhurst Park.
"It was hard after the game to switch on and think about Southampton," said Benteke. "Now we have to move on and look forward to the game this weekend.
"When we did the 4-3, you think: 'It's done, it's almost done.' And then they came back to 4-4, then 5-4. I think this type of game, and specifically when you come back from 3-1 down, we are not allowed to lose this game.
"You try to forget and think of all the stuff, but it just comes back every time you watch TV and you say: 'No, we lost,' and then you try to think of something else and it comes back again.
"For a few days it was quite hard and then you have to keep going, there is no secret, you have to look forward and go again.
Football is a collective sport, so we win together and we lose together
"We have to deal with it [pressure] because we are in that situation and now we cannot come back behind them, if everyone does his best, then we are going to get something out of this game."
Palace have now gone 18 league games without keeping a clean sheet, including conceding a league-high 13 goals from set plays this campaign, two more than they let in during the whole of last season.
Benteke is adamant, however, that this is an issue of concentration and can be easily fixed.
"I think it is more a spirit problem," he said. "If we are all focused and angry at that moment, then there is no team that can beat us I think in the set pieces.
"For me, it is in terms of concentration and sprit at that moment. The focus like we have when we score or have to come back in games, whatever the score is, has to be the same for the set pieces."
As for his own form since joining Palace from Liverpool in August for a club-record £32m, Benteke claims there is more to come from him, despite scoring five times already in 11 league games for his new team.
"I think I could have done better, but obviously I did not have a pre-season so it is hard to go straight in and be fully fit," he said. "But yes, in terms of my own play I can say I am feeling good and I am happy so far. But I want more for me and the team."
Watch Christian Benteke's interview in full on Soccer Saturday from 12pm
