Crystal Palace forward Connor Wickham has hit out at Sunderland fans, claiming they were “too quick to judge him” during his stint at the Stadium of Light.

The 22-year-old, who joined the Black Cats in 2011 in a deal worth £8m from Ipswich, was labelled as a ‘flop’ by some Sunderland fans.

Wickham scored a flurry of goals to secure Premier League football two seasons ago but ultimately only claimed 15 goals in 91 appearances for the club.

However, the England U21 star now feels he is working with the right manager in Alan Pardew and says he is much happier at Selhurst Park.

“I’m a million times happier at Palace than at Sunderland,” Wickham told the Daily Mirror.

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“Being booed doesn’t bother me. From the stands everybody plays a perfect game. I don’t know what Sunderland fans were expecting.

“They were quick to judge. I played in a position that wasn’t my natural position or one that I anticipated playing in. But I won’t use those times to bring me down. You have to learn to ignore them.

“It didn’t go to plan at Sunderland. The idea was that I would be the focal point of the team and it didn’t work out that way.

“I had four years up there and I’m grateful what they did for me. But now I’ve a new project. At Palace we’ve got a set of fans who’ve backed us through thick and thin.”

While injuries have stalled Wickham’s progress in south London, the forward says his game is developing all the time and he is hopeful of making a substantial impact when returning from the treatment table.

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He added: “I’ve now got the right manager. He believes in me. If, four years ago, I’d had him as manager it would have been different.

“I’ve developed my game massively since I’ve come here and I’m playing through the middle. As soon as I was told Palace were interested I was on a train down to London. I was so excited.

“All my friends and family have seen a massive difference in the way I talk and the way I act. I’ve come home. I wake up in the morning looking forward to work. I’ve got my motivation back.

“I look forward to every game but this game [Palace v Sunderland] in particular will be good for me.”

The Eagles face relegation-battlers Sunderland at Selhurst Park tonight.

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