Palace face a familiar opponent in Newcastle United as this time it is the Tyneside outfit who travel to Selhurst Park for this League Cup 4th round tie.
The two sides met only three weeks ago when it looked as though Mike Williamson had snatched three points for the home side until Wilfried Zaha fired a last gasp equaliser home to give Palace their first point of the season.
Much different circumstances for the two sides only a matter of weeks later as a struggling Toon managed to come back from two goals down to draw 2-2 against Hull City. While that result eases the pressure on boss Alan Pardew, many expect him to be the first managerial casualty of the season after a poor start has left fans frustrated.
Team News
Newcastle United – boss Alan Pardew has a decision to make over super-sub Papiss Cisse. He has admitted that Cisse is nowhere near match-fit and will assess him before naming his team. Defender Davide Santon (knee), midfielders Siem de Jong (thigh), Rolando Aarons (hamstring) and striker Adam Campbell (hernia) are all still out.
Crystal Palace – boss Neil Warnock has already confirmed that there will be starts for Barry Bannan, Jonny Williams, Andrew Johnson and Zeki Fryers. Marouane Chamakh continues his recovery from a hamstring injury that will likely see him miss this one as well as Saturday’s visit of Leicester City. Keeper Wayne Hennessey is likely to start in goal as a side of fringe players will most likely be fielded in preparation for the return to Premier League action next week.
Predicted Palace Starting Line Up
Hennessey – Fryers – Hangeland – McCarthy – Kelly – Zaha – Bannan – Guedioura – Williams – Johnson – Doyle
Analysis
Newcastle may benefit more from progressing in the League Cup to take the fans minds off of their poor league form but that will be mean more games for an injury struggling side which may not benefit them. Warnock will also view this competition as no more than a distraction although it may well prove beneficial in terms of match fitness for players who have yet to feature much for the Eagles this season such as Jonny Williams and former captain Paddy McCarthy.
View From The Opposition
Ahead of the cup tie we had a chat with Newcastle United fan Jake Jackman from the EPL Index;
We are going through a tricky patch at the moment which has led to serious questions being asked about Alan Pardew and rightly so in my opinion. It is getting to the point that something has to change or we will be involved in a serious relegation battle which would be unforgivable given the squad that we have. Our last two home games have seen us draw with Palace and Hull City, both we could easily have lost. I would go as far to say that both teams would have been disappointed at only getting a draw at St James’ Park given the run of the games, particularly Palace.
Looking ahead to this game, it is well known that Newcastle do not take cup games that seriously, so expect a weakened side. By the looks of things, the same could be said of Palace who are predicted to play a similarly weakened side. Taking that into consideration, expect a few goals but it is impossible to predict a winner. Home advantage will count for a lot so probably puts Palace as favourites … just.
You can also have a read of the View From The Opposition article where we spoke to the guys at NUFC Fans earlier in the season.
Predictions
EPL Index prediction – home win
TEB prediction – home win
Jake Jackman prediction – home win (in extra time)
