Full-back van Aanholt is loving life at Crystal Palace

Patrick van Aanholt says that he feels right at home at Crystal Palace.

The 26-year-old full-back moved to Selhurst Park from Sunderland in January for a fee potentially rising as high as £14 million, with the Dutchman linking back up with his old manager Sam Allardyce.

An ankle injury has limited van Aanholt to just nine Palace appearances so far – including the Eagles’ 2-0 loss to Burnley last weekend – but the former Chelsea man is still savouring his new life in south east London.

“I am loving it – from the moment I signed, it felt like home,” said van Aanholt.

(Photo by Tony Marshall/Getty Images)

“Obviously, I was with Sam Allardyce last season at Sunderland when he kept them in the Premier League.

“He has worked in a similar way to then, where he gets the players working on the basics and then [goes] from there with the planning for the games, and putting the work in on the training pitch –  and that is the same here.

“We have improved together, and the results show that, but we know we are not safe yet and there is still work to be done.

“We have been showing on the pitch how everyone is confident and mentally strong to carry out the instructions from the backroom team.”

The Palace defender added: “It shows what the Premier League is like this year, with everyone capable of getting a result against someone else, and we have beat Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool, so it shows – even in a tough league – how competitive we have been.”