Allardyce to train Palace minds to solve league struggles

(Reuters) - Sam Allardyce is focused on ensuring Crystal Palace are in the right frame of mind to fight to secure Premier League survival. Palace are 17th in the table on 16 points, one above the relegation zone after 20 games, and travel to face 13th-palced West Ham United on Saturday. "At the end of the day my job is to instil confidence in the players. It's about coaching their minds to be more capable of what we need to achieve," Palace manager Allardyce told the London Evening Standard. "It's more psychological coaching than tactical or technical because it's the mind that gets you out of trouble. When the mind and the will is strong, you start making the right decisions -- you start winning games. "Everyone in this country talks about core strength, flexibility, mobility, speed. All that means nothing unless the mind is in the right place." Allardyce, who took over at Palace last month, said he jumped at the chance to make a quick return to management following the swift and controversial end to his England tenure. "Football is my life and this opportunity came up very quickly. I wasn't expecting it... it was settled pretty quickly," the 62-year-old added. "The club was sold to me well, with regard to its ambition with the new owners. They needed someone to turn it around. As has happened frequently, people think I am one of the few who have managed to do that on a regular basis. "Back to what I know best and here I am trying to stabilise this club and ensure it stays in the Premier League and then moves on." (Reporting by Shravanth Vijayakumar in Bengaluru)