Cardiff City are four points behind 17th-place Brighton in the race for survival. Anything short of a positive result on Saturday against Crystal Palace would doom the Bluebirds to relegation.
Neil Warnock’s team is dependent on results elsewhere as their future is not in their own hands. Brighton will play against Arsenal at the Emirates and with the way the Gunners are playing, don’t put it past the Seagulls to gain a point.
It will be high pressure for Cardiff City on Saturday but not for Roy Hodgson’s Eagles. Crystal Palace confirmed their status in the Premier League two weeks ago.
Crystal Palace are undefeated in their last two matches. Their run of positive results includes a 3-2 win over Arsenal at the Emirates and a nil-nil draw with Everton a weekend ago.
Hodgson’s Eagles are undefeated against Cardiff City in their three most recent Premier League meetings dating back to 2013. Two of the three matches ended in wins for Crystal Palace and all three meetings saw the Eagles keep clean sheets.
Cardiff City have history against them as they have fired nothing but blanks against Crystal Palace previously. The previous game between Cardiff City and Crystal Palace ended nil-nil earlier this season at Selhurst Park.
Warnock could have midfielder Aaron Gunnarsson back from a muscle injury at the weekend. Kenneth Zohore is recovering from a calf strain and could also make Cardiff City’s starting XI. Meanwhile, Joe Ralls and Harry Arter are both expected to miss out on Saturday.
Crystal Palace look likely to be without striker Christian Benteke who suffered an injury in training this week. He will undergo a late fitness test prior to the game.
Hodgson won’t have Jeff Schlupp, James Tomkins, or Mamadou Sakho for the fixture. The good news is the trio have been out for some time and Crystal Palace have been able to win in spite of their absences.
The pressure has been immense on Cardiff City in recent weeks and they have continued to fail in big games. The Bluebirds have lost five of their last six matches in the Premier League and based on their form, relegation should be confirmed on Saturday at against Crystal Palace.
Crystal Palace have the sixth best away record in the Premier League this season. Twenty-six of Crystal Palace’s 43 points have come on the road this term. They are a strong side away from home which is different from years past.
Hodgson’s side will doom Cardiff City to relegation on Saturday as the Eagles keep another clean sheet. This game should see fewer than 2.5 goals scored as Cardiff City says goodbye to the Premier League.