Crystal Palace will be looking to make it back-to-back wins when they take on West Bromwich Albion at Selhurst Park on Saturday.
After a close match with Norwich that needed a penalty to separate the two teams, Palace will be looking to try and fix some of the issues that have plagued them in the last few weeks. Their distribution in the final third has really been an issue and if they want to win this game, that is something that will need to sharpen up quickly.
West Brom had a tough game last time out, surrendering a 2-0 lead to Everton before losing to Everton 3-2. The defeat, galling in the extreme for Tony Pulis – who had never surrendered a 2-0 lead in the Premier League before – ended their three game unbeaten league run. Romelu Lukaku scored a double that saw his side secure a fabulous come-from-behind win. A silver lining for West Brom to take out of this game was the performance of Saido Berahino, who played well and scored Albion’s second goal. For a player who seemed near-certain to head to Tottenham in the summer, this is a highly welcome turnaround.
This should be an entertaining game between two sides who are playing good football at the moment.
Key Battle – West Brom’s wing backs vs Crystal Palace’s wingers
Based on their performances of late, most – if not all – of the Eagles’ attacking play has come down the wings, where the speed of Yannick Bolasie and Bakary Sako has proven very difficult for opposition teams to deal with. This was used to great effect when Palace were playing at their best against Chelsea earlier in the year; Palace took advantage of vulnerable opposing wing backs, beating them into submission, and sending in swooping assist after swooping assist.
West Brom will be looking to tease out good performances from both Chris Brunt and Craig Dawson, who will most likely starting at right and left back respectively. They will be the players responsible for ensuring that there is no easy space for the Eagles wingers to take advantage of.
The Baggies did have issues in this position last time out with Gerard Deulofeu able to take advantage from the right hand side. The Spaniard was able to send in some inviting crosses for his Everton team mates and if West Brom want to win this game they will have to rectify these issues against Palace.
Team News
Palace should have available their regular combination at the back, with both Damien Delaney and Joel Ward potentially able to start after overcoming their injuries. Striker Connor Wickham is also a possible returner, although he will more than likely start on the bench if fit.
West Brom are in the enviable position of having a full strength team to select from, apart from Ben Foster who will be out for the season with an ACL injury. Pulis will most likely enter this game with an unchanged line up.
Head to Head
In the 41 previous meetings between these two sides, West Brom hold the upper hand with 17 wins compared to Palace’s 11, with 13 encounters ending in stalemate.
Previous Meeting
In the previous encounter, West Brom were 2-0 victors at Selhurst Park with goals from James Morrison and Craig Gardner in what was a fierce meeting with 6 yellow cards given.
Prediction
It will be a battle between two sides who are looking to improve after lukewarm showings last time out. This should make for a close game, a tight tussle where the points will not be given away lightly. A draw is likely.
Crystal Palace 1 West Bromwich Albion 1
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