Sam Allardyce has described Mamadou Sakho's impact as "exceptionally good" after the defender helped Crystal Palace to keep consecutive clean sheets in victories against Middlesbrough and West Brom.
Speaking after the 2-0 win against West Brom, which took Palace out of the relegation zone and onto 25 points, Allardyce said any concerns he had about the on-loan Liverpool defender's fitness were gone.
"You're slightly concerned when you take a player in the January window who's been frozen out," Allardyce said. "But then again once you've got him fit -- and we got him fit really quickly with the way he applied himself -- we knew that you can't play that many games for Liverpool and be a bad player. Certainly the lift he's given us defensively in the two games he's played has been exceptionally good."
Sakho arrived at Selhurst Park without making an appearance for Liverpool this season having been frozen out by Jurgen Klopp, but Allardyce said he had managed difficult players before and was unconcerned by the risk.
"As managers we deal with players in different ways," he said on Saturday. "Like if I'd have been harsh on [El Hadji Diouf] with some of the antics he got up to he'd have never played for Bolton. Sometimes you do it in a different manner.
"I'm not criticising Jurgen Klopp whatsoever about the way he runs his club or what sort of discipline he wants but for me I treat each individual differently. As for Sakho he hasn't turned up late or not turned up anywhere up to now ..."