England Premier League
Saturday 13th February 2021
Kick off at 3pm GMT
Venue: Selhurst Park
Match Preview:
The realisation at Crystal Palace looks crystal clear, here we have a team who won’t be relegated but also won’t qualify for Europe and look destined to finish in 13th place. Palace are a little rinse and repeat this season, win a couple, lose a couple. Of course there should be positives to be taken for how the Eagles have conducted themselves this season, survival is always going to be key but you get the feeling that under Roy Hodgson the club have not really gone forward.
One must remember though that Palace have been hit by a string of injuries this season and for sure that would have handicapped them. Palace’s last game ended in defeat as they lost 2-0 at Leeds and that was unfortunate as they were going for their 3rd consecutive win. Victory here could see Palace pushing for a top 10 place but at home the club have won just 4 games from 11 played. Form is improving in their own stadium though and the Eagles come into this match with just one defeat at home in their last four. Palace’s last home game ended in a 1-0 win over Wolves.
Burnley were disappointing in midweek as they were knocked out of the FA Cup at home to Bournemouth with that game ending 2-0. It seemed like a scratch your head moment that Burnley manager Sean Dyche decided to field a weakened team in the cup. True Burnley would have been outsiders to win the Cup but had they started with their strongest team they could have possibly have won the game and been in the quarter finals, three games away from winning what would have been an historic FA Cup, and with the cup you never know.
However Dyche wanted to concentrate on the league more and whilst the club are in 17th place they are 8 points in front of the bottom three, perhaps taking the slight risk of playing to win in the cup would have been the better option from a fans point of view, and it all seems rather negative from Dyche.
Last weekend Burnley drew 1-1 with Brighton and the club have picked up seven points from their last 15. True they are not out of the woods just yet but an 8 point safety gap to Fulham is still very welcomed. On the road Dyche’s team have lost six games from 11 and 3 of those have come in their last four games. The clubs last away game ended in a 2-0 defeat at Chelsea.
Team News:
Crystal Palace: James McCarthy and James McArthur are expected to return from knocks though that hasn’t been confirmed as of yet. Wilfried Zaha looks to be ruled out with a hamstring injury. Connor Wickham, James Tomkins, Jeffrey Schlupp, Wayne Hennessey and Nathan Ferguson are all out long term.
Burnley: Chris Wood is only 50/50 to return following his hamstring injury, it is the same case with Charlie Taylor. Josh Brownhill, knock, and Robert Brady, ankle, will be assessed but could miss out.
Crystal Palace vs Burnley Head to Head:
Last season Burnley won this fixture.
Burnley have won the last two meetings against Crystal Palace and by the same scoreline of 1-0.
From the last 10 meetings Crystal Palace have 5 wins and so does Burnley.
There is a 60% chance to see under 2.5 goals.
Crystal Palace vs Burnley Prediction:
We expect to see a very close game with possibly only one goal deciding the outcome. Palace have injuries again and not having the services of Wilfried Zaha unless he makes a miraculous comeback is a big blow. Even then the forward would feel rusty one would suspect. Palace blow hot and cold and are quite unpredictable but given their injuries we think even at home they may spend long periods defending and trying to counter attack.
Burnley won’t feel disappointed about their cup exit it almost feels like it is what Dyche wanted anyway. Palace do not need to go for a win but you get the feeling Burnley do, and they could be the more attacking team, but a point for both clubs would not be a surprise and they may both play for that.
Crystal Palace vs Burnley Betting Tips:
Half Time Result: A draw at 2.00
Correct Score: 0-0 or 1-0 to Burnley at 8.00 and 8.00
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