Off the back of two consecutive defeats, Eagles boss Patrick Vieira has plenty to think about heading into the trip to Old Trafford with the reaction from the players being key.
DATE
5th December 2021
KICK OFF
3pm
VENUE
Old Trafford, Sir Matt Busby Way, Stretford, Manchester M16 0RA
LAST TIME
It was a fruitful trip to Old Trafford back in September 2020 as the Eagles handing the hosts a surprise defeat. Andros Townsend opened the scoring early for the visitors before Wilfried Zaha converted a penalty late with around 15 minutes left to play. Donny van de Beek left the bench to pull one back but Zaha grabbed his second and Palace’s third shortly after to secure the victory.
WHO SCORED MAN OF THE MATCH – Jeffrey Schlupp (8.7)
OFFICIALS
Referee: Craig Pawson. Assistants: Lee Betts, Scott Ledger. Fourth official: Jonathan Moss. VAR: Simon Hooper. Assistant VAR: Derek Eaton
TEAM NEWS
PALACE – Joel Ward will miss out through suspension after receiving his 5th booking of the season against Leeds on Tuesday evening. James McArthur (hamstring) and Nathan Ferguson (fitness) are both out while Joachim Andersen is expected to return.
UNITED – Raphael Varane (thigh), Edison Cavani (knee), Aaron Wan-Bissaka (wrist), Nemanja Matic (thigh), Luke Shaw (face), Cristiano Ronaldo (thigh) and Paul Pogba (thigh) are all doubts.
DISCIPLINARY
RED CARDS –
YELLOW CARDS (4+) – Joel Ward (5), Conor Gallagher (4), Paul Pogba (4), Bruno Fernandes (4), Fred (4), Luke Shaw (4)
FORM GUIDE
Last FIVE meetings between the two sides;
- 03/03/21 Palace 0-0 United
- 19/09/20 United 1-3 Palace
- 16/07/20 Palace 0-2 United
- 24/08/19 United 1-2 Palace
- 27/02/19 Palace 1-3 United
Last FIVE results for Palace:
- 30/12/21 Leeds 1-0 Palace
- 27/11/21 Palace 1-2 Villa
- 20/11/21 Burnley 3-3 Palace
- 06/11/21 Palace 2-0 Wolves
- 30/10/21 City 0-2 Palace
Last FIVE results for United;
- 02/12/21 United 3-2 Arsenal
- 28/11/21 Chelsea 1-1 United
- 23/11/21 Villarreal 0-2 United
- 20/11/21 Watford 4-1 United
- 06/11/21 United 0-2 City
RECORD AGAINST UNITED
- Played 59
- Won 9
- Drawn 12
- Lost 38
FORM PLAYERS ACCORDING TO WHO SCORED
- Conor Gallagher 7.43
- Paul Pogba 7.14
- Mason Greenwood 7.10
- Christian Benteke 7.03
ONE TO WATCH
CRISTIANO RONALDO
FORMER CLUBS – Andorinha, Nacional, Sporting Lisbon, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus
We all know what the 36-year-old superstar can do and he has seemingly carried United since returning to the club with 6 goals in 11 performances so you have to wonder what position they would be in without him.
KEY CLASH
WILFRIED ZAHA v DIOGO DALOT
After a couple of mixed performance from Wilf, he will be relishing the opportunity to go up against a United defence that is looking increasingly fragile, particularly with the Portuguese full back looking likely to line up against Palace.
PRE-MATCH FACTS
- United have lost their past 2 home games against Palace, as many as in the previous 22 meetings at Old Trafford
- They could fail to beat the Eagles for a third consecutive match for the first time since a run of 4 between 1925 and 1970
- Palace’s back-to-back league defeats have come after a 7-game unbeaten run
- Defeat at Leeds was their first away from home in the league in 4 matches and also failed to score for the first time in 9 games in midweek
- Palace have conceded in the 90th minute of league fixtures 3 times this season, costing them 5 points
PRE-MATCH STATS
- GOALS – Benteke/Zaha/Gallagher (4 – 20th in PL)
- ASSISTS – Gallagher (3 – 14th in PL)
- PASSES – Guehi (932 – 7th in PL)
- TACKLES – Mitchell (41 – 2nd in PL)
- TOUCHES – Guehi (1074 – 8th in PL)
- SHOTS – Benteke (32 – 14th in PL)
- SAVES – Guaita (40 – 9th in PL)
DID YOU KNOW?
In 1892, after more than a decade of being funded by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Company, United finally became a limited company. They proceeded to raise capitol by selling shares to local supporters for £1 per share.
PREDICTION
It is difficult to predict this one following the managerial change at Old Trafford but the Eagles do make the trip having won both on of their last two visits. There is a lot of intrigue about the new appointment and how the hosts will set up to take on Palace but we are expecting a performance by the visitors to secure a point.
FINAL SCORE: 2-2
BETTING ODDS
- Home – 4/7
- Draw – 3/1
- Away – 5/1
- Both teams to score – 4/5
RESOURCES
