Tottenham Hotspur travel from north to south London to take on a Crystal Palace side who are in a worrying spell of poor form.
Before the end of the year, The Eagles were putting firm pressure on the teams above them in the hunt, for the very least, a Europa League spot.
But since the turn of 2016, three straight Premier League losses has sent Alan Pardew’s side falling down to the table and closer to the bottom half of the table than the top six.
Tottenham meanwhile saw their passage through to the fourth round of the FA Cup in midweek, with a solid 2-0 victory over Leicester City, retribution for their league defeat at home to The Foxes the week previous.
With European football on the cards for both teams, Saturday’s fixture is a chance for Palace to put the pressure back on West Ham United and Manchester United and for Spurs to pull away from the pair.
Crystal Palace
Alan Pardew’s side surprised many people at the start of the season with their impressive performances and up to Christmas, were seen as genuine contenders for a Europa League spot.
Recently though things haven’t gone quite to plan. Last weekend’s 4-0 drubbing at Manchester City made it no win in five league games, but more concerning is the fact that Palace haven’t scored in that time, with no goals since the two to beat Stoke City on Boxing Day.
That’s what is massively holding Pardew’s Palace back. Just one goal has been scored amongst their strikers and that was a Connor Wickham penalty.
With defenders Joel Ward and Scott Dann scoring more times than any striker at Selhurst Park, Pardew needs to sign more fire power if they want to be taken seriously near the top of the table.
With a strong defence and midfield, except for the mistakes in goal from Wayne Hennessey which is a big worry for Alan Pardew, it is up front and out wide which is even more of a hindrance Palace.
For all the talent of Yannick Bolaise, Jason Puncheon and Wilfried Zaha, they’ve registered just four assists and six goals between the three and that’s not good enough for a team with top six aspirations.
And Bolasie is not ready to return to Saturday’s match through injury, which will be a big blow to The Eagles as despite his end product, he is still their most threatening player.
With Yohan Cabaye struggling to pull the strings in midfield with one assist all season, Palace need to address their goalscoring issues this January window and maybe bring in another attacking midfielder capable of creating chances.
Damien Delaney is sidelined meaning Brede Hangeland could start against Spurs while Dwight Gayle has recovered from a hamstring injury, but isn’t fit to be in the squad.
Tottenham Hotspur
Wednesday’s 2-0 victory over Leicester came as a bit of a surprise, due to how lacklustre the home side were and how comfortable Spurs were, although one would expect that was more down to team selection than anything else.
But again it shows how powerful Spurs are when responding to defeat. The disappointing home loss to Leicester was followed up by a 4-1 battering of Sunderland and their progress to round four of the FA Cup.
Spurs are learning to pick themselves up from defeat and rectify their mistakes.
That’s massive in their quest for Champions League football as it shows a mark of consistency and sends a warning to other rivals that they aren’t capable of wobbling when results aren’t going their way.
Heung-Min Son’s exceptional goal and all-round performance has given Mauricio Pochettino food for thought ahead of the weekend.
Having seen how effective the South Korean is out wide rather than in a central role, Poch may be inclined to give Son a start.
Christian Eriksen, who played more centrally on Wednesday night, has seen fortunes improve in recent weeks and is much more effective through the middle than out wide.
Both Dele Alli and Erik Lamela has struggled in recent weeks and could do with a rest, but given Alli’s consistency, signs point to the Argentine being given a breather on the bench and allowing Alli to continue in the hole.
Ryan Mason, Clinton N’Jie and Alex Pritchard all remain out and Harry Kane and the Belgian trio of Mousa Dembele, Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld are expected to return to the starting line-up.
Last time out
20th September 2015 – Tottenham 1-0 Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace view: Alan Pardew, manager
“I’m more confident ahead of this game then I was City, not because they’re any less an opponent, but because we’ve had time to prepare.
“In terms of the run [Tottenham] are on, they have confidence, their squad is strong and that gives them a massive advantage.
“Pochettino has done terrifically well in both his jobs in England. He’s got what he wants on the pitch.
“He’s got a chance of a really decent legacy there. Whether you can have a legacy in the current game, I don’t know, but you can dream.” (Daily Mail)
The Tottenham view: Mauricio Pochettino, manager
“It’s a very good challenge for us to try to win at Crystal Palace, it would be a very good position for us if we win the game.”
“The players and the squad are very focused, to be ready, to prepare and to compete.”
“We’re expecting a very tough game because it’s not an easy place. We must arrive in a very focused condition, to ensure we can fight for the three points.” (BBC)
Prediction
Crystal Palace are out of form and out of clinical strikers. Spurs should be able to take all three points.
Crystal Palace 0-2 Tottenham Hotspur
