Crystal Palace and West Ham were winners on matchday 20 in the Premier League. Now, the London rivals are set to play on matchday 21 at Selhurst Park with three massive points up for grabs.
These teams met in August at the London Stadium with the match ending 2-2 at full-time. West Ham took the lead in the first half courtesy of Pablo Fornals. Crystal Palace’s Conor Gallagher levelled the scored just after halftime.
🎶 Super, super Fab... 🎶🧤 @LukaszFabianski pic.twitter.com/1mt5XiCtdl— West Ham United (@WestHam) December 30, 2021
🎶 Super, super Fab... 🎶🧤 @LukaszFabianski pic.twitter.com/1mt5XiCtdl
West Ham’s Michail Antonio put West Ham back into the lead after the hour-mark, but as the match was winding down, Gallagher struck once more to send the Eagles back to south London with a point.
David Moyes’ Hammers have slipped up quite a bit over the month of December. The number of fixtures on all fronts has got to Moyes’ small squad. West Ham’s matchday 20 win over Watford ended a two-match losing streak.
Crystal Palace have had some bumpy bits this season under first-year manager Patrick Vieira. Overall, the season has been a success, showing what could be in store for Crystal Palace fans over the next few seasons.
Draws between Crystal Palace and West Ham have been a regular occurrence over the course the teams’ last 10 meetings. Five of the last 10 games between these London rivals ended as stalemates. West Ham picked up three wins and Crystal Palace two across those last 10 meetings.
Vieira could be without up to six players. Winger Wilfried Zaha was suspended due to yellow card accumulation against Norwich in midweek. He will return to the starting XI despite Odsonne Edouard playing well in Zaha’s absence.
Defender Joachim Andersen and midfielder James McArthur are both ruled out with injuries. Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss the match. In addition, Nathaniel Clyne and Conor Gallagher are both set to miss the game for unspecified reasons.
Moyes will get Declan Rice back following a suspension. He won’t have defenders Kourt Zouma, Angelo Ogbonna, or Aaron Cresswell available due to injuries, however. Pablo Fornals is ruled out through illness.
Crystal Palace have drawn eight of 19 matches in the league this season. It is the second-most draws in the Premier League. West Ham have drawn four of 19 matches.
Based on the two teams’ form, past history of draws, and previous stalemates in 2021-22, this should finish level at full-time. It won’t be a dull draw, however. Crystal Palace and West Ham should both score and combine for over 2.5 goals, just like in the reverse fixture.