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Published: 19 days ago

Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest: Preview and Prediction

Crystal Palace will look to bring an end to their four-match winless run in the league when they host top-five hopefuls Nottingham Forest on Monday.

Both Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest have struggled for form in recent weeks, and they will be eager to return to winning ways when they meet on Monday at Selhurst Park.

The home team are 12th on the table with 45 points in their 34 outings. Oliver Glasner’s have been struggling in the league in recent weeks, having failed to win any of their last four Premier League outings. So, the Eagles will be desperate to end their poor run with a positive result at home.

While Crystal Palace’s league form has not been good enough, they are heading into this fixture on the back of a 3-0 win over Aston Villa in the FA Cup semi-final. Having booked a place in the final against Manchester City, the Eagles will certainly be high on confidence heading into this one.

Meanwhile, the Tricky Trees were comfortably occupying a UEFA Champions League spot a few weeks back. But things have gone downhill for the of late as they have lost three out of their last four league games. Now, they are down to sixth but are still level on points with Chelsea heading into the Gameweek 35.

Nottingham Forest can still secure a top-five finish, but they will have to ensure they win their remaining games. Their last outing was a shocking 2-0 defeat at the hands of Brentford, and they will certainly have to do much better to secure all three points against the Eagles. The Hard Tackle takes a close look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could deploy.

Team News & Tactics

Crystal Palace

While Tyrick Mitchell did come off in their last outing, he has not picked up any serious injury and is expected to be fully fit for this fixture. Meanwhile, the home team will be without the services of Chadi Riad and Cheick Doucoure, who are both out injured with knee issues.

Oliver Glasner will stick to the 3-4-2-1 formation, where Dean Henderson will be in goal. The back three will be made up of Chris Richards, Maxence Lacroix and Marc Guehi. The trio will look to keep things tight at the back and they will receive significant support from Daniel Munoz and Tyrick Mitchell, who will be the wing-backs.

In the centre of the park, Adam Wharton will pair up with Daichi Kamada. The duo will look to control the tempo of the game and ensure they dominate the ball. Eberechi Eze and Ismaïla Sarr will feature as the two attacking midfielders behind Jean-Philippe Mateta, who will lead the line for Crystal Palace against Nottingham Forest.

Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Henderson; Richards, Lacroix, Guehi; Munoz, Wharton, Kamada, Mitchell; Eze, Sarr; Mateta

Nottingham Forest

Callum Hudson-Odoi picked up a hamstring injury in their defeat against Brentford and will certainly miss this fixture. Apart from him, Eric da Silva Moreira is also out with an ankle injury.

Nuno Espirito Santo could stick with the 4-2-3-1 formation, where Matz Sels will be in goal. Neco Williams and Harry Toffolo will be the full-backs for the visitors. Meanwhile, Nikola Milenkovic will start alongside Murillo in the heart of the defence.

As for the midfield unit, Ibrahim Sangare and Elliot Anderson will form the double pivot in the middle of the park. The duo will look to shield the backline and ensure they control the tempo of the game.

Anthony Elanga and Nicolás Dominguez will feature on the flanks providing much-needed width to their attacks. Morgan Gibbs-White will continue in the number ten role, with Chris Wood spearhead the Nottingham Forest attack against Crystal Palace.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Sels; Williams, Milenkovic, Murillo, Toffolo; Sangare, Anderson; Elanga, Gibbs-White, Dominguez; Wood

Key Stats

  • Crystal Palace have been winless in their last four Premier League games.
  • The Tricky Trees have lost four out of their last six top-flight games away from home.
  • The Eagles are unbeaten at Selhurst Park in their last five matches across competitions.
  • Nottingham Forest have the second-best away record in the EPL. They have won nine games on the road, only Liverpool (11) have won more.
  • Nottingham Forest have been unbeaten in all nine head-to-head Premier League games between the two teams.

Player to Watch

Morgan Gibbs-White

Embed from Getty Images

Along with Chris Wood, Gibbs-White has been one of the standout performers for Nottingham Forest this season. The 25-year-old attacking midfielder has been involved in a total of 30 league games, and he has contributed towards 14 goals (5 goals, 9 assists).

The English international has not contributed towards a goal in his last five league outings and with the club struggling to get the desired results in recent weeks, Gibbs-White will be eager to step up and get the job done for his team.

Prediction

Crystal Palace 1-2 Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest might have been inconsistent in recent weeks, but they still possess the firepower to hurt Crystal Palace. Despite their recent struggles, the visitors have a strong away record and are capable of bouncing back from their disappointing result against Brentford.

With UEFA Champions League qualification still very much on the line, the Tricky Trees are expected to come out all guns blazing and push for a much-needed three points. Meanwhile, the Eagles might be high on confidence after their FA Cup semi-final win, but their recent league form does not inspire much optimism. The Hard Tackle predicts a hard-fought 2-1 win for the away team.

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