Crystal Palace
West Bromwich Albion FC
West Bromwich Albion FC
Crystal Palace looking to extend gap to relegation places against doomed 19th place West Brom
Crystal Palace to win 1-0
Among the 20 teams in the Premier League, West Brom arguably play the least attractive brand of football, scoring just 20 goals this season, while conceding a league-high 56.
The appointment of Sam Allardyce just before the end of 2020 has somewhat tightened them up at the back, though going forward matters have not improved.
In recent weeks, they have secured a number of draws which has kept them out of range of 20th place Sheffield United, but hasn’t served to bring them closer to safety. They are surely doomed now.
Crystal Palace, on the other hand, can breathe a sigh of relief as it seems they will be safe for another season, sitting eight points clear of danger.
Although they took a thrashing against Spurs last weekend, they will welcome back Wilf Zaha here and they will fancy their chances of grabbing their 10th win of the season.
Form Guide (all comps): LWDDL
Reasons to be cheerful:
Have picked up enough points recently to feel safe
Wilf Zaha has returned from injury
Reasons to be fearful:
Still without a string of first-team players due to injury
West Brom are in must-win territory
Despite their 4-1 defeat at the hands of Tottenham last weekend, the one positive that did emerge from the match was the return of Wilf Zaha from the substitutes bench, confirming his return from an injury which made him miss the previous five games.
Here, he’ll be fit enough to return to the side, but the Eagles are still nursing a long list of injuries, including the likes of Sakho, McCarthy, Tomkins and others.
However, Zaha will be welcomed back, potentially alongside Benteke up front, and will hope to cause no end of trouble for those West Brom defenders. He remains their top scorer this season, with nine, despite missing eight of the 28 games so far.
Star Man – Wilf Zaha
Alongside Benteke up front, Zaha can cause some real damage to West Brom, and will provide hope to Palace throughout the remainder of the season.
Form Guide (all comps): DDWLD
Reasons to be cheerful:
Six points from last five games has kept them just about in contention
Should approach this as a must-win
Reasons to be fearful:
Only seven points collected from 13 away matches this season
Next fixture is away to Chelsea
There is not a whole lot to be positive about for West Brom right now, who are staring firmly down the barrel of relegation in their first season back in the Premier League.
Arguably, it has not been Sam Allardyce’s fault, as he took over the club in the exact same position it finds itself in now. However, he has done little to improve the fortunes of the side on the pitch, and their away form is particularly disappointing.
Their recent results, such as winning against Wolves and drawing against Manchester United have at least kept things interesting, but with an eight point gap to safety, things look very desperate for the Baggies.
Fortunately, he should have a full squad to choose from here, aside from the doubtful Kieran Gibbs.
Star Man – Mbaye Diagne
The big centre forward must step up for his team here. Since scoring in the draw against Man United, he’s gone quiet.
A very tight game between two sides not wanting to lose
One goal could settle it
West Brom must win here to survive
You feel that this is an absolute must-win for West Brom. They are likely to be relegated anyway, but they can kiss goodbye to whatever remaining hopes they had if they fail to pick up three points here.
Crystal Palace will also want something from the game – if they lose, they will start looking over their shoulders again.
The Eagles should have enough, especially with Zaha back, to claim three points.
Crystal Palace to win 1-0
