PALACE’S HUGHES ON “TOUGH MATCH” AND CLUB’S “CHARACTER”

On the performance by Doncaster tonight, Crystal Palace’s Will Hughes told BBC Sport: “We knew it was going to be a tough game. If you look at the results over the weekend, although there weren’t many shocks as such, all the games were tight involving Premier League teams and teams lower than them, so we knew it was going to be a battle.

Asked if he was pleased to be back after a period of injury, he said: “We’ve got such a good group here, aa great squad. Good to see a couple of faces back tonight, Matheus [Franca] and Adam [Wharton] who have been out for quite a while, so it was a good night all round.”

In terms of his team’s chances in the rest of the competition, he said: “With the squad and how seriously we take it, I think we’ve always got a chance and the gaffer’s told us that many times. We’ve taken all the cup competitions seriously with the team selections and how we approach the games, so I think that’s shown this season, and it’s another chance to go far.”

Finally on the club’s season in the Premier League, he said: “We had such a poor start in the league, it was really disappointing bur we bounced back really well, showed a lot of character and we’re in a good position at the moment, results-wise and performances, so we’ve just got to keep that up and the old cliché again of seeing where it takes us.”