Crystal Palace manager Sam Allardyce has said that he had no problem with chairman Steve Parish delivering a speech to his players in the immediate aftermath of their 4-0 defeat to Sunderland.

Last weekend, Palace conceded four first-half goals to fall to a surprise home setback against their relegation rivals, and it was later reported that Parish had entered the dressing room to speak to the squad.

However, while confirming that the reports were true, Allardyce has suggested that Parish's words had helped the team move on from the defeat ahead of their trip to Stoke City on Saturday afternoon.

The 62-year-old told reporters: "That was a release of his frustration on the basis that he's a Crystal Palace fan and he wanted to go in and talk to the players. That's fine by me.

"Like I said, by the end of Sunday morning it was all clear what we'd been through, we'd all let ourselves down and we've got to take it on the chin and bounce back. We've got to show some real fighting spirit now and I think that's what everyone wants to see."

Palace head into the game in the Potteries two points adrift of safety in the league table.