Crystal Palace travel to the Amex Stadium to face Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League’s early kick-off on Saturday.
Palace are currently 13th – two places and five points ahead of Brighton in the table. A win for Roy Hodgson’s side would see them move clear of the bottom three, but a win for the Seagulls would drag Palace into the relegation battle.
Brighton have only lost one of their last five league games, but four draws during that time have prevented Graham Potter’s side from moving up the table.
After rescuing a dramatic point with a late comeback against West Ham at the beginning of the month, Brighton have since registered back-to-back 1-1 draws with Watford and Sheffield United.
The Seagulls will be eager to avoid defeat again this week, but Crystal Palace could prove to be tricky opponents.
Hodgson’s men ended a seven-game winless run by beaten Newcastle last weekend. Patrick van Aanholt netted the only goal of the game with a brilliant free-kick.
However, Palace have struggled to find the back of the net all season, and no team in the Premier League has scored fewer goals than the Eagles in 2019/20.
Having said that, only five teams in the top flight have a better defensive record than Crystal Palace this term.
Meanwhile, Brighton haven’t had any problems scoring goals this season, but their poor defensive record is a cause for concern.
Brighton have only lost one of their last six games against Palace and are unbeaten in their previous three meetings.
Following back-to-back wins for the Seagulls in this fixture last season, the two teams played out a 1-1 draw earlier in this term.
Looking at the team news, Dale Stephens could be set for a return to the Brighton team, but Jose Izquierdo is a major injury doubt for this weekend.
As for Palace, James Tomkins, Mamadou Sakho and Jeffery Schlupp are all on the treatment table, while Luka Milivojevic and Cheikhou Kouyate are doubts.
Brighton have drawn their previous three games, while Crystal Palace have recorded six draws in the last 12 league matches.
All the signs are pointing towards another draw between these two teams on Saturday, while both managers will probably be happy to settle for a point.
Forebet predicts that both teams will score. However, this game is set to end in a draw.