Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa
Date: 31/08/2019
K/O: 15:00
Venue: Selhurst Park
Referee: Kevin Friend
Crystal Palace and Aston Villa have now officially made their mark on the 2018/19 Premier League season with a pair of unprecedented and historic wins.
A first league win in 30 years against last week’s rivals, Manchester United, means Palace have accumulated the trifecta of results – a win, loss and a draw – in their first 3 league games already. Meanwhile, Villa recorded just their third win in their last 17 meetings against Everton, looking right at home in the furnace that is the Premier League.
Once a fortress that struck the fear cord in almost every team’s bow, Selhurst Park has been home to just 5 wins in its owners’ last 20 matches at the venue. The worst home league record of current top-flight teams over that stretch (Huddersfield, now relegated, had recorded 2 wins over the 19 home matches last season). Palace will play host to Villa at Selhurst this weekend.
On paper, a home game to a team who many touted as prime relegation candidates at the start of the season after just marginally achieving promotion last season, should be a walk in the (Selhurst) Park.
However, apart from 30 minutes against Tottenham in game-week one, the Villains have hardly put a foot wrong so far. Fans will be hoping for the olive-branch performance shown in last week’s win against Everton to extend this week in what is – again, on paper – potentially one of the easier away games they may face this season (in respect to Palace’s home record.
Both sides played mid-week in the Carabao Cup against League Two opposition, fielding a squad full of players that should regularly challenge the 11 starting places in their teams throughout this season. Both squads produced vastly contrasting results.
Villa progressed through to the next round of the Cup with a breezy 1-6 win away against Crewe Alexandra.
In stark contrast to Villa’s triumph, Palace capitulated – at home, worryingly enough – on penalties to their opponents, Colchester United. On a fine-weathered night, it’s certainly not a result that the club would want to dwell on. A make-shift defence fielding non-natural fullbacks, Sam Woods (a natural centre-back) and Jairo Riedewald (a natural centre midfielder) at right-back and left-back respectively, will have definitely restricted the hosts.
Both managers have rotated formations to start the season, with Roy Hodgson’s veteranized 4-4-2 appearing twice so far returning uninspiring performances in the opening two games. A difficult away trip to Old Trafford culminated in a change of structure that was beyond successful. The 4-5-1 set up is one that Roy reserves for the more inclined opposition and it has worked to great effect in recent seasons. The boisterous bunch at Selhurst Park will most likely not appreciate an appearance of such defensive tactics against more vulnerable opposition in Villa this weekend.
After a choice of wide-wingers/midfielders was employed so briskly last week, a more attacking variation of the formation may be reviewed for this Saturday. Many Palace fans have been crying out for a return to the 4-3-3 shape that produced many positive results for the club to the end of last season.
With Jordan Ayew’s inspiring performance and goal against Europa League-level opposition in game-week three, Hodgson could opt to entrust the now permanent signing as a lone striker yet again. Despite the promising performance and enticing proposition, injury woes may inhibit this is as a possibility.
At home last season, Palace were reserved and compact and they successfully emulated that in the game-week one display against Everton. Against last season’s third most goal-hungry Championship side, Hodgson may hold the right to continue that way.
His opposing manager, Dean Smith, has used a 4-1-4-1 formation in two of three games this season after it helped his side to promotion last season.
After a busy summer transfer window, Douglas Luiz – one of Villa’s shiny new recruits – has been tasked as the all-important holding midfielder, and at just 21-years-old, he is the team’s youngest most regular starter so far this season. After plying his trade in Spain for the best part of the last two seasons (albeit in the second league) it seems he has picked up a technical nous that has helped him hold down a starting spot in the Premier League so far.
As the holding midfielder, Luiz’s role is just to sit back and apply a protective film to his defence and watches on as the attackers go to work.
Villa’s attack resembles a more reserved style of the way Liverpool’s offence works. Having lower quality defenders means the wide wingers/midfielders will sit back more when in defence, but the attacking philosophy remains the same.
The wingers hold an extremely wide position, so on a counter-attack – like they did so effectively last season – they can go down one of two routes. They can either continue their run wide to provide a crossing option, forcing the fullbacks/wide-defenders to hold their position out wide as well, guarding the opponent rather than the space. This opens up a channel for another attacker to run into – more headaches for the defence. Alternatively, the wide winger/midfielder can run more centrally and swap positions, momentarily, with the striker to create chaos for the defence.
They played this way perfectly in the first half against Tottenham in week one, before Spurs’ quality well and truly shone through in the second half. However, promisingly, the effort and application were clearly there as debutants thrived in the new system.
Trezeguet has caused several problems for defenders with his erratic dribbling and unpredictability while Jota has most definitely done the same, assisting fellow new-boy, Wesley’s, opener against Everton last week.
The pair, amongst others, will look to continue a good start against an astute, and now on form, Crystal Palace this weekend.
Team News
Crystal Palace
It took four weeks, but Palace’s injury woes have finally returned for the new season.
After failing to invest in new fullbacks after letting Papé Souaré go for free and Aaron Wan-Bissaka for a club-record fee, Patrick van Aanholt and Joel Ward’s unavailability for the mid-week clash will stretch Palace threadbare.
Sam Woods, an under-23 centre-back, and Jairo Riedewald, a centre-midfielder, were forced to fill in at either fullback position as cover for the two that missed against Colchester mid-week.
Promising academy left-back, Tyrick Mitchell, could be handed an unprecedented, yet timely, debut in similar circumstances that saw a certain Wan-Bissaka debut just over 18 months ago. However, having just recovered from injury, it would be almost unfair to ask him to step up to a Premier League pace of play immediately.
Martin Kelly has been deployed at right-back in recent seasons – to contrasting effects – which may also see the return of Scott Dann to the starting line-up.
With the club yet to confirm the availability of any of the three players, predicting the starting line-up will be impossible as their availability can alter several positions.
A reversion to a 4-4-2 set-up seems most likely, assuming Ward, van Aanholt and Schlupp remain unavailable. A make-shift starting line-up will have to suffice and Victor Camarasa could debut out of position as a wide midfielder.
Aston Villa
For Villa, Matt Targett – Villa’s new left-back from Southampton who has yet to appear a minute in the Premier League for the Villains – injured a hamstring mid-week. It looks unlikely that he’ll be able to debut in the Premier League just yet. The club still haven’t confirmed a time frame, but after being substituted immediately, this weekend may yet be too soon.
Jonathan Kodja and James Chester remain unavailable, but neither would be expected to make their way into the starting line-up after eight goals in their last two games (in all competitions). The same team that performed against Everton, could most likely be entrusted again, away at Palace.
Predicted Starting XIs
Crystal Palace: (4-4-2): Guaita; Kelly, Dann, Cahill, Woods; Townsend, McArthur, Milivojevic, Camarasa; Zaha, Ayew.
Aston Villa: (4-1-4-1): Heaton; Guilbert, Engels, Mings, Taylor; Luiz; Jota, McGinn, Grealish, Trezeguet; Wesley.
Score Predictions: Crystal Palace 1-1 Aston Villa
If Palace are to be without their only two first-team fullbacks, they will have to employ two natural centre-backs as cover for the absentees.
This will most likely force Hodgson’s hand and ask his team to play a more reserved style of play to protect an alternate defence, but Villa are an attacking team on form and it will be hard to hold them out.
