Crystal Palace and Leeds United will both be looking to bounce back from respective defeats when the two sides meet at Selhurst Park for today’s Premier League showdown.
Palace suffered a 2-0 defeat away to Wolverhampton Wanderers last time out, whereas Leeds were no match for Leicester City at Elland Road on Monday.
Things have not been going swimmingly for Roy Hodgson and Crystal Palace since that historic win at Old Trafford, with the Eagles picking up just one victory from five since then.
Palace did manage to take four points from a possible six in showdowns with Brighton & Hove Albion and Fulham, but Hodgson’s men were soon brought crashing back down to earth as Wolves eased to a 2-0 victory over the Eagles last Friday.
Rayan Ait Nouri notched up a goal on his debut while Daniel Podence made sure of the win over Palace, who also had Luka Milivojevic sent off on a truly forgettable night for Hodgson and co, who will be as determined as ever to bounce back and head into the international break with another win under their belts.
In spite of the fact that Wilfried Zaha has enjoyed a stellar start to the campaign with five goals and one assist in the league, Palace have only notched up three other strikes not scored by the Ivory Coast international – the joint lowest besides the bottom four – but watching Leicester put four past Leeds may give the Eagles’ attacking contingent some much-needed confidence before the two sides take to the field this afternoon.
Leeds have always promised to serve up tasty showdowns since making their eagerly-anticipated return to the big time, but while there were goals in abundance in their most recent fixture, Marcelo Bielsa’s men only notched up one of them.
The Whites welcomed an in-form Leicester side to Elland Road several days after they had already dispatched another high-flying side in Aston Villa with ease, but Brendan Rodgers’s men proved too strong for Leeds as Leicester ran out 4-1 winners on the night, with Youri Tielemans netting twice and further strikes from Harvey Barnes and Jamie Vardy completing the rout.
Bielsa may be concerned about his side’s home form now that Leeds have gone three games without a top-flight win on familiar territory, but the Whites have won two from three on their travels – with that solitary defeat on the road coming in the seven-goal thriller at Anfield back in September.
Leeds have since taken maximum points from trips to Sheffield United and Villa, with Patrick Bamford chalking up all of Leeds’ goals in those two matches, and the Whites will need the Englishman to continue his prolific form on the road if they are to return to winning ways at Selhurst Park.
Palace and Leeds have not locked horns since the 2012-13 Championship campaign, with Leeds winning 2-1 at home before the spoils were shared in a 2-2 draw in the capital.
Crystal Palace possible XI: Guaita, Clyne, Kouyate, Dann, Van Aanholt, Townsend, McArthur, Riedewald, Schlupp, Zaha, Ayew.
Leeds United possible XI: Meslier, Ayling, Koch, Cooper, Dallas, Struijk, Costa, Klich, Hernandez, Harrison, Bamford.