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Newcastle United vs Crystal Palace: 02/02/2021 – match preview and predicted starting XIs

Newcastle United vs Crystal Palace

Date: 02/02/2021

K/O: 20:15

Venue: St. James’ Park

Referee: Darren England

TV: BT Sport 2

The two oldest managers in the league are set to battle it out, yet again, with both teams stuck in no-mans-land between the top 10 and the relegation zone.

Potentially for the last time, we may see Roy Hodgson take on the only other more experienced Premier League manager in the league, with the Palace boss’s contract running out at the end of the season, ending a decade long rivalry.

With just 3 wins combined from their last 20 competitive fixtures, when Crystal Palace travel to Newcastle it definitely won’t be the ‘battle of the titans’. However, with both teams stereotypically leaving until late to pursue victory it will be interesting to see which of the manager’s orders their team to take charge from the start.

Two of three sides in the Premier League still brandishing the previously abandoned 4-4-2 will meet for the second time this season. This is following Newcastle’s leaving-it-late two-goal victory away from home in the first gathering.

This time around Palace will introduce a weapon that did not feature last time. A weapon who, without, they have lost 16 of their last 19 league fixtures since the start of the 2016/17 season in the Premier League.

Wilfried Zaha is on track to have a career campaign, on the face of things, with nine goals to his name already. With his expected goal tally of 0.34 per 90 minutes equalling his highest average since fbref.com began recording data for this metric in 2017/18. This highlights the improvement in his finishing considering he has nine goals from 6.4 expected this season, compared to nine from 9.7 in that 2017/18 season.

Yet, against Wolves, he was moved out wide to his more natural position. This was to accommodate a fan-approved formation change following a string of uninspiring performances recently.
Palace started with the 4-2-3-1 in the first half against Wolves and instantly looked more defensively organised. Once known as one of the most frustrating sides to face, Palace were beginning to build a reputation as easy beats. Consecutive losses to Liverpool and 10-man Aston Villa highlighted this demise, where they conceded a combined 10 goals in those games.

Of course, the Eagles have been plagued by defensive injuries this season with their three first-choice centre-backs – Gary Cahill, James Tomkins and Mamadou Sakho – all absent at the moment. Thus, the change was necessary.

This change in formation saw Zaha start in a left-attacking-midfield position, further back than he has been used to this season. This switch came with an obvious shift in his style of play. He became more of a creator than has been so. Recording his second-highest pass completion rate, the second-highest number of shot-creating actions and the most progressive carries (i.e. carries that move the ball towards the opponent’s goal, except in the defending 40% of the pitch) in any of his games this season as per fbref.com.

Michy Batshuayi was also preferred up top, as opposed to the form-building Christian Benteke. Much criticised for his lack of goals and involvement this season – he has had three goals ruled out for offside as well – the Chelsea loanee was heavily involved against Wolves. Every notable chance Palace created involved both smart movements and passing from Batshuayi. His ability to move quickly, and into the right positions, after he releases the ball separates him from other strikers at the club.

Both Zaha and Batshuayi will be influential to the outcome of this game. Especially against a Newcastle side who are coming off the back of a surprise 2-0 victory away against Everton thanks to their star recruit Calum Wilson.

Despite not being the most prominent recruit of the English summer, Wilson has delivered what he promises: goals. His end product has earned Newcastle a mammoth 14 points this season, not even inclusive of his assists – one of which helped open the scoring in their 2-0 victory away at Crystal Palace this season.

With the rest of the Newcastle attack struggling for form in an incredibly rigid 4-4-2 system, Wilson’s presence and Premier League experience up front has been imperative to their fight for survival.

Bruce’s reluctance to expand on a majorly defensive style has frustrated the Newcastle faithful to no end, considering their belief in the personnel available at the club. Allan Saint-Maximin has been played out of form – and constant injuries have not helped his search for form – due to an incredible focus on defensive duties. While Jeff Hendrick, a solid defensive midfielder who is erratic offensively, remains the club’s equal-second top goal scorer with a mere two goals.

Both sides have been struggling for form, as previously mentioned, and their heavy reliance on the output of a single player is worrying for both clubs. This is despite a decent array of talent available at the disposal of both managers. Equally frustrating seasons have plagued both fan sets of fan bases. Underperformance, both offensively and defensively – despite being notoriously defensive sides – has cast a dark shadow on the fortunes of the clubs this season.

Could this be the turning point? Can one of these sides win consecutively for just the second time this season and begin to propel themselves up the table?

Team News

Newcastle United

Jamaal Lascelles has picked up a muscle injury and will be unavailable for a few weeks as per Bruce’s pre-match conference. During the conference, Bruce also mentioned Ryan Fraser’s possible absence due to illness.

Ciaran Clark will be available to start against Palace after successfully completing 45 minutes in the 2-0 victory on the weekend. He will be needed to start, especially considering Federico Fernández’s continued absence and Paul Dummet’s question mark coming into this game.

Crystal Palace

James McCarthur’s consistency has been faultless and bewildering, especially at his age. The 33-year-old picked up an injury in the loss at home to West Ham in match week 20 and missed the subsequent win against Wolves.

His replacement, James McCarthy, injured himself and was substituted during the half-time break in the win over Wolves. This opens the door for Jairo Riedewald to start for just the second time since he picked up Palace’s player of the month award for October.

James Tomkins underwent successful surgery to mend a fractured eye socket that will keep him out of the side for the time being. Nathaniel Clyne was substituted off early against Wolves and his fitness will also be monitored.

Predicted Starting XIs

Newcastle United (4-4-2): Darlow; Manquillo, Clark, Schär, Lewis; Hayden, Hendrick, Shelvey, Saint-Maximin; Wilson, Almirón

Crystal Palace (4-2-3-1): Guaita; Clyne, Kouyaté, Dann, van Aanholt; Milivojevic, Riedewald; Townsend, Eze, Zaha; Batshuayi

Score Prediction: Newcastle United 0–2 Crystal Palace

The absence of Lascelles will be huge for Newcastle, while the creativity that Riedewald can provide from midfield will be an added bonus against a rigid defensive set-up. In Zaha, Eze and Batshuayi, Palace have the agility and pace to trouble a defensively stricken Newcastle defence and will hope to use this advantage to their own benefit.

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