Charlton keep it tight for their first win on the road

First, he swooped to sign the combative former Addicks defender Danny Mills on a short-term loan until December from Manchester City and followed this with a season-long move for Reading centre-back Sam Sodje, who was suspended for the Palace game last Saturday (September 1).
Then for the short trip to Selhurst Park he took the decision to sacrifice striker Svetoslav Todorov and play with a 4-5-1 formation aimed at stifling the opposition and beating sides like Palace at their own game.
When Todorov did get on the pitch, in a surprisingly flat game for a local derby, he showed the value of having a squad of players desperate to impress by scoring the only goal of the game after 67 minutes. Other players were
switched around, too. As well as Mills, Pardew brought Chris Powell into the side for his first start of the season to add experience to his defence, resulting in the first league clean sheet of the season.
"It was our game plan to keep things as tight as we could. We played a little bit narrow and not as open as we would usually at home," said Pardew.
"We have got such an abundance of midfielders and strikers with great
talent," he added. "Just look at Therry Racon, who came on and was outstanding in his first game in the Championship.
"We will have to sacrifice people. I sacrificed Thomas and might have to
do the same with Reid and Ambrose," added Pardew. "We have to make sure we have got enough people on the pitch to deal with tough away games like this."
Forget the local bragging rights, the controversy over the way Charlton enticed Iain Dowie to The Valley last summer and the ground-sharing arrangement between the two clubs in the 1980s - this match was all about getting three more points.
It was significant, too, as it gave Charlton an early away victory after winning just once all season on the road last year and then slipping to a defeat at Stoke.
Pardew has also continued the process of gradually shipping out some of the dead wood he inherited from the Alan Curbishley and Dowie eras.
Striker Marcus Bent - whose long-term future at the club had looked in doubt since Pardew brought in no fewer than six strikers over the summer - has departed for a season-long loan at Wigan, while Amdy Faye, who had yet to make an appearance this season, has moved to Rangers on a similar deal.
With other players due to return from injury, wins in the Carling Cup as well as the league and signs that both the manager and players are adjusting to their new surroundings, things suddenly look a bit more rosy for Charlton than they did after the first two games of the season.
"It was important for us to get our first away win and we did that," said Pardew. "We don't deserve massive plaudits but we did a good job. We've all got a long break now and with four wins, a draw and a defeat, that is more like the results we should have.
"Matt Holland could be back after the window and Luke Varney will definitely be back and I think we will be far stronger for that."
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