Manchester United will face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park this evening – a match which was due to be played back in September but it was postponed because of the death of Queen Elizabeth II. United were set to have just over a week off before this match was scheduled in by the Premier League. It will now be the halfway point of the season in the Premier League for both clubs. United have added three more fixtures to their season in the past week.
Erik ten Hag’s side beat Manchester City 2-1 in the second Manchester derby of the season, which kept the spirits high after a good run of form in all competitions since the resumption of the season following the FIFA World Cup. United will face Arsenal on Sunday in the Premier League – still being the only team to have beat the Premier League leaders this season. Palace will be seeking to better their league position knowing they beat United last season.
Palace were beaten 1-0 by Chelsea on Sunday, which gives them one win in their last six matches and with United’s form much better than theirs, it puts United in contention for another victory at Selhurst Park. Of course, Palace could make this match difficult for United but with 11 goals conceded in their last six matches in all competitions and the fact United have scored 15, conceding just three, it makes it even worse for Palace.
Manchester United
De Gea;
Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Martinez, Shaw;
Casemiro, Eriksen;
Antony, Fernandes, Rashford;
Weghorst
Substitutes
Heaton; Lindelof, Maguire, Malacia; Fred, Pellistri, McTominay; Elanga, Garnacho
Crystal Palace
Guaita;
Clyne, Richards, Guéhi, Mitchell;
Doucouré, Hughes;
Elise, Mateta, Zaha;
Édouard
Substitutes
Johnstone; Ward, Tomkins; Milivojevic, Eze, Schlupp, Riedewald, Ozoh; Ayew
United and Palace have met 26 times in the Premier League with United winning 18 matches, drawing five matches and Palace winning three. United have scored 45 goals, winning four penalties, scoring three. Palace have scored 14 goals, winning one penalty, scoring it. United have won their last ten matches at Old Trafford and are undefeated in their last 12. Away from home, United have won the last two matches so need to make a run of it.
United have kept 17 clean sheets with Palace keeping five. Discipline has been an issue in this fixture with United players shown 39 yellow cards and one red card and Palace players shown 42 yellow cards and two red cards. Palace beat United in this fixture at the end of last season, which was unfortunate for United but it saw the Ralf Rangnick era, albeit only temporary, end. United are a much better team this season and the progress is there for all to see.
Wilfried Zaha, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Fraizer Campbell and Timothy Fosu-Mensah have all played for United and Palace. Schlupp was once on trial at United. Campbell and Fosu-Mensah came through United’s academy. Zaha was Sir Alex Ferguson’s final signing as manager of the club and he ended up making just four appearances, failing to score a single goal, returning to Palace 18 months later. Wan-Bissaka was purchased from Palace in the summer of 2019.
Written by John Walker
