The Premier League London derbies have been coming thick and fast for Crystal Palace as of late, and this weekend sees their third in succession as they play host to crosstown rivals Tottenham at Selhurst Park.
The last two weeks has seen the Eagles go up against both Arsenal and Chelsea, while life does not get any easier this weekend as they prepare to go up against a Tottenham side which is seemingly back in the saddle after their win at Wolves last week.
For Palace those aforementioned clashes with Arsenal and Chelsea have produced just one point out of a possible six and it is fair to say that Roy Hodgson’s men are starting to look over their shoulder with the relegation zone hovering perilously near.
Tottenham now find themselves back in the top four of the Premier League after not only their most recent win in the competition, but also the fact that Unai Emery’s Arsenal had to make do with a just a point at home to Liverpool in their last outing.
And now that Tottenham have leapfrogged their arch rivals once more, it is a position that they will look to solidify before going into the third international break of this season. One that then sees them entertain Chelsea at Wembley when the Premier League action resumes in late November.
Strangely enough both teams seem to be playing their better football away from home this season, although you could say it is for differing reasons. For the hosts on Saturday, they have seemingly been hampered by the lack of atmosphere at Selhurst Park this season.
Much has been made of the fact that the Holmesdale Ultras who were responsible for the majority of the noise in the ground, are absent until the 2019/20 campaign due to a dispute about seating arrangement.
And it is lack of atmosphere which is then seeing some stagnant performances from the Palace players at Selhurst Park, while for Tottenham much has been made about their stadium woes during this season as they once again have to make do with a stint at Wembley.
Away from that ground they seem to have a lot more freedom, something that was clearly evident in their display against Wolves at Molineux. Mauricio Pochettino’s men raced into a 3-0 lead, before a nervy finish saw them concede two second half penalties and just about hold on for the win.
The Tottenham boss will be hoping that these recent impressive away day performances continue and with Crystal Palace not having much joy in front of their own fans as of late, then he will be quietly confident that is the case.
A lot will depend as to what version of the hosts turn up on Saturday, on their day they can be a handful for anyone. It’s just that those days are very few and far between. It might be a tight call, but Tottenham should come out on top in this one as they aim to stay in the hunt for the title.