Forget the league; this is a chance for the Eagles to reach the quarter finals of the best cup competition in the world. Standing in their way is Championship side Stoke City, who will of course be wanting the same thing by claiming a scalp if the fifth round.
DATE
1st March 2022
KICK OFF
7.30pm
VENUE
Selhurst Park, Holmesdale Road, London SE25 6PU
LAST TIME
It has been a while since we last played Stoke, but their last visit to Selhurst was in November 2017. Xherdan Shaqiri gave them the lead just after the break before Ruben Loftus-Cheek scored the equaliser. With the game looking like it was heading for a draw, Mamadou Sakho popped up with the winner to seal all three points in dramatic fashion.
WHO SCORED MAN OF THE MATCH – Xherdan Shaqiri (7.9)
OFFICIALS
Referee: Robert Jones. Assistant Referees: Ian Hussin & Derek Eaton. Fourth Official: Leigh Doughty. VAR: David Coote. AVAR: Sian Massey-Ellis
DISCIPLINARY
RED CARDS – Wilfried Zaha (1), Joe Allen (1), Tommy Smith (1), Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel (1), Morgan Fox (1), Callum Connolly (1)
YELLOW CARDS (5+) – Ben Wilmot (9), Callum Connolly (6), Joel Ward (6), Conor Gallagher (6), Keshi Anderson (6), Jacob Brown (6), Sam Clucas (6)
FORM GUIDE
Last FIVE meetings between the two sides;
- 05/05/18 Stoke 1-2 Palace
- 25/11/17 Palace 2-1 Stoke
- 11/02/17 Stoke 1-0 Palace
- 18/09/16 Palace 4-1 Stoke
- 07/05/16 Palace 2-1 Stoke
Last FIVE results for Palace:
- 26/02/22 Palace 1-1 Burnley
- 23/02/22 Watford 1-4 Palace
- 19/02/22 Palace 0-1 Chelsea
- 12/02/22 Brentford 0-0 Palace
- 09/02/22 Norwich 1-1 Palace
Last FIVE results for Stoke;
- 26/02/22 Bournemouth 2-1 Stoke
- 23/02/22 Stoke 1-2 Luton
- 19/02/22 Stoke 2-2 Birmingham
- 12/02/22 Forest 2-2 Stoke
- 08/02/22 Stoke 3-0 Swansea
RECORD AGAINST STOKE
- Played 60
- Won 28
- Drawn 13
- Lost 19
FORM PLAYERS ACCORDING TO WHO SCORED
- Conor Gallagher 7.27
- Harry Souttar 7.21
- Lewis Baker 7.10
- James McArthur 6.88
ONE TO WATCH
JOSH MAJA
FORMER CLUBS – Crystal Palace, Fulham, Manchester City, Sunderland, Bordeaux
A lot was expected of Maja when he first broke through at Sunderland but a move to French football has seen him drop off the radar somewhat. A loan move to Fulham followed by a current loan spell at Stoke appears to have put him back in the shop window.
KEY CLASH
JEAN-PHILIPPE MATETA v PHIL JAGIELKA
The experienced centre back will be a challenge for the French striker but it will be a contest he will be up for and will be key if Palace are to continue their cup run this season.
PRE-MATCH STATS
- GOALS – Gallagher/Zaha (8 – 12th in PL)
- ASSISTS – Michael Olise (5 – 10th in PL)
- PASSES – Marc Guehi (1721 – 6th in PL)
- TACKLES – Tyrick Mitchell (83 – 2nd in PL)
- TOUCHES – Marc Guehi (1991 – 7th in PL)
- SHOTS – Wilfried Zaha (41)
- SAVES – Guaita (59 – 13th in PL)
DID YOU KNOW?
The club were originally formed under the name Stoke Ramblers in 1863, but 15 years later they merged with Stoke Victoria Cricket Club and became Stoke Football Club. In 1925, when Stoke-on-Trent was granted “city status” their name changed again, this time to Stoke City Football Club.
PREDICTION
The team selections will be key for the cup tie but it is difficult to know how each manager will approach the game. You would like to think that the fifth round is where teams take the competition seriously and with Stoke mid-table in the Championship and Palace heading towards relative safety, we should see two teams really going for it but we are hoping that Palace have just enough to get themselves into the quarter finals.
FINAL SCORE: 2-1 to Palace
BETTING ODDS
- Home – 8/15
- Draw – 14/5
- Away – 11/2
- Both teams to score – 11/10
RESOURCES
