Crystal Palace left the Stadium of Light with a point last weekend, leaving them three points clear of the Premier League relegation zone.

Tony Pulis billed the game as a "must not lose" and he will have been delighted with the performance of his back four to ensure that this did not happen.

In particular, Damian Delaney impressed, as he marshaled his back four to great effect.

The EA Sports player performance index shows he made 20 defensive contributions - the most in the Palace squad, and the fifth most in the league.

Mile Jedinak has earned plaudits all term after producing a number of stellar defensive performances.

This was the case again on Saturday as he made four interceptions, taking his overall tally for the season to a staggering 103.

The PPI shows this is comfortably the most in the league and underlines precisely how important the Australian is to the Palace squad.

If Crystal Palace are to survive this year, the club should look to change the ground’s name to "Selhurst Pulis" as they looked destined for the drop prior to him taking the reins.

One area where he should be praised is his workings in the transfer market, as he has signed a number of players who have strengthened the squad.

One of these additions is centre half Scott Dann, and since he arrived south east London, he has been a colossus at the back making a total of 60 defensive contributions in only five appearances.

Another move that Pulis made in the January transfer window was signing winger Jason Puncheon on a permanent deal.

The former Southampton player has become a key component of the Southampton side and his offensive ability in particular is a key cog in the Eagles armoury.

The PPI underlines shows that Puncheon has made a total of 440 attacking contributions (based on passes in the opposition half, crosses, dribbles and shots on target), the second most in the Palace squad.

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Colossus: Scott Dann's has made 60 defensive contributions in five games - according to the PPI