Jordan Ayew keen to 'pay back' Crystal Palace as he vows to fight for the club

After committing himself to the Eagles until 2025 on Wednesday, Ayew on Saturday became the first Ghanaian to reach 250 Premier League appearances as he helped Palace to a 2-0 win away at Burnley, setting up Jeffrey Schlupp's first-half opener before Tyrick Mitchell got a late second.

The 32-year-old joined Palace, initially on loan from Swansea, back in August 2018 and has made 187 appearances for the club.

"I keep on enjoying my football, that is the most important thing," Ayew said. "They gave me the opportunity to express myself here and to keep improving.

"I am going to fight for the football club because they have given me so much and I need to pay them back. To keep on performing and winning games and climbing up the table as well."

Palace paid £2.5million to make Ayew's switch from south Wales permanent in the summer of 2019. In an age of huge transfer fees in the Premier League, the former Aston Villa and Marseille forward has proved a bargain.

"To be honest, I didn't think I would be here this long when I signed!" he said. "It was actually crazy because the first season I didn't play much, I really didn't think I would have stayed that long.

"But sometimes in life you cannot predict. I do my job every day when I go into training and have a smile on my face. Work hard and get rewarded day by day. I am pushing every day and see where it takes me¦

"I have confidence in my ability and I know that I can contribute to the team, and the club they know it as well. I have my opportunity, I just try to do my best and make sure I work hard for the team and win games."

Although Palace took the three points back to the capital, even Roy Hodgson admitted Burnley would feel aggrieved at the result, having dominated the ball and had 16 attempts at goal to the visitors' four.

But the fact is Burnley have now set an unwanted top-flight record by losing their opening six home games of the season, a third of the campaign gone at Turf Moor without any reward.

After their dominance in the Championship last season, manager Vincent Kompany is facing a very different challenge to maintain confidence levels in what is mainly a young and inexperienced group.

Kompany was pleased with large parts of Burnley's performance on Saturday, and believes the rewards will come.

"The goal ultimately is that the players turn up the next time and win the game," he said.

"You always have different groups, different individuals, but the key point where you can't compromise is that if someone has not worked hard, if someone has not turned up for the team and been selfish, I wouldn't let it slide as a captain, I wouldn't let it slide as a manager, ever.

"I don't even let it slide with my kids. It wouldn't happen.

"But in the context of a performance like (Saturday) and an individual mistake that cost us, you have to tell them to do (the performance) again, and to smarten up. We'll show them, we'll help them, and we won't let them drop any standards ever. That's the key thing for me."

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