Jordan Ayew admits Crystal Palace suffered a wake-up call at Leicester ahead of their FA Cup clash with Chelsea.
The Eagles lost 2-1 at King Power Stadium and will face Chelsea in the semi-final on Sunday.
Ademola Lookman and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored for Leicester with Wilfried Zaha scoring a second-half goal.
Zaha’s effort came after Kasper Schmeichel saved his penalty, but VAR ruled that Caglar Soyuncu had invaded and ordered a replay.
Schmeichel saved his second penalty but the striker nodded on the rebound, although Ayew knows they need to improve before their trip to Wembley.
“It’s a wake-up call for us to know how important it is for us to have a very good start to the game and build on that,” he told the club’s official website.
“The most important thing is that it happened now and not against Chelsea. Now we have a week to prepare for Chelsea and we will do the best we can.
“That is the message from the coach and it was quite simple and short: it is a good wake-up call and we prepare for the next game as best we can.
“In the second half we were a much better team. We didn’t give up, we pushed, but we couldn’t come back, which is the most important thing.
“I feel like we didn’t start the game well. It was all about the beginning. We paid the price and conceded two goals”.
Dewsbury-Hall set up Lookman’s first goal before adding a second just before half-time with his first Premier League goal.
The midfielder impressed during his breakout season with the Foxes, but refused to let go.
He told the club’s official site: “I will probably reflect at the end of the season. Now, the games are coming fast and plentiful. I really can’t afford to sit and watch. I have to focus and recover and be ready for every match.
“We are reaching a very important part of the season and everyone knows it. I feel like we’re in a good place right now, we’ve got a lot of the team back and we can really get started and have a great end to the season.
“I’m happy to be playing and doing the best I can for the team, then when the end of the season comes I’ll see where I’m at.”
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