Recent Form
Despite missing Patrick Vieira on the touchline and star performers Wilfried Zaha and Conor Gallagher on the pitch, Palace found life easy last time out as they downed a sorry Norwich 3-0.
The Eagles have lost just once in four appearances now, a 3-0 defeat away to Tottenham as Zaha suffered a first-half red card, so they’ll come into this one with plenty of confidence.
West Ham have seen their form dip in recent weeks, with their 4-1 win over Watford last time out ending a five-game losing streak in all competitions.
That spell included defeats to Dinamo Zagreb, Arsenal, Tottenham and Southampton, while it’s worth noting that Watford entered that most recent clash having barely trained in two weeks owing to covid-related problems.
Still, a 4-1 victory is always going to install some confidence and the Hammers can point to the table, where they remain up in fifth place, even if Tottenham and Man Utd each have a pair of games in hand.
The Draw
Palace hold a decent record taking on the Hammers in recent times. They’ve lost just one of six meetings since 2019 (W2-D3-L1), with their encounter in August this season ending in a 2-2 draw.
Both teams have scored in all nine head-to-heads since 2017/18, with five of them ending in stalemates, while four of the last five clashes have produced at least three goals.
Both Teams To Score
Although Palace were only facing Norwich on Tuesday, who hold the joint-worst defensive record in the division alongside Newcastle after some recent heavy defeats, the 3-0 triumph means they’ve scored in nine consecutive home league games for the first time in the top flight.
Conor Gallagher is expected to miss out again, as are Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze, though the Eagles will undoubtedly benefit in attack from the return of Wilfried Zaha from suspension.
The hosts’ chances of registering on the scoreboard are also helped by West Ham’s ongoing injury problems at the back. Declan Rice will return to the base of midfield here, but Angelo Ogbonna, Kurt Zouma and Aaron Cresswell are all expected to be unavailable.
Including their 3-2 win over Liverpool where Ogbonna suffered a cruciate ligament injury, with both of the Reds’ goals coming after he departed the field, the Hammers have kept just one clean sheet in nine games without him, as that came against low-scoring Burnley.
PREDICTIONS:
THE DRAW
BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE
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