Football News: Premier League Match Previews Sunday 25th February 2018

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Sunday 25th February 2018

Crystal Palace v Tottenham Hotspur 12:00pm kick off

Ward (muscle injury expected return 17th March) out
M Sakho (calf strain expected return 17th March) out
Zaha (knee injury expected return 10th March) out
Kelly (hamstring injury expected return 5th March) major doubt
Speroni (knee injury expected return 7th April) out
B Sako (broken ankle expected return 18th August) out
Schlupp (MCL injury expected return 10th March) out
Dann (ACL injury) out
Puncheon (PCL tear) out
Loftus-Cheek (ankle injury) doubt
Wickham (ACL injury) doubt
Cabaye (thigh injury) doubt

The Palace revival under Roy Hodgson is showing signs of fading away lately, as they have now gone four games without a win, losing two of those, and are slipping back down the table to sit in 15th. They lack quality in the final third, especially with Zaha out, who at least attacks the opposition with the ball at his feet and makes things happen. Without him they are reduced to hoping Andros Townsend flukes a mishit into the back of the net or to one of his team-mates (for a change). With Spurs, Man Utd and then Chelsea to face in a row, they will just be hoping to pick up a point or two in the next few weeks.
Most important player: Patrick van Aanholt. The Dutch fullback is hopeless defensively but he can be a real threat going forward.

Alderweireld (thigh injury) late fitness test

People expected, including me, Spurs to find it more of a struggle at home this season with them playing at Wembley, rather than White Hart Lane. Instead they have been excellent at home but not so good away from Wembley. The fine margins separating 2nd from 5th has meant that those not so good results have seen them sitting just outside the top four before the weekend started. They are on a good run of 9 games without a loss and come into this game on the back of an excellent away result against Juventus in the Champions League, so confidence should be flying high right now.
Most important player: Mousa Dembele. In the form he is in right now, Dembele controls games and takes over in midfield.

Defining Battle: Spurs will swarm all over a struggling Palace side, who have to look to shut Harry Kane down and stop him from shooting quickly before the goalkeeper is set. Kane has to be closely marked and not allowed time and space to deliver.

Editors' Predictions:
Ed002 - 0-2
Ed003 - 1-4
Ed004 - 1-2
Ed007 - 0-2
Ed018 - 1-2
Ed025 - 1-1
Ed033 - 0-2

Manchester United v Chelsea 2:05pm kick off

Herrera (hamstring injury) out
Rojo (knock) doubt
Jones (knock) doubt
Fellaini (MCL injury expected return 31st March) out
Blind (ankle injury) out
Ibrahimovic (knee injury) out

Two defeats in the last three matches added together with star midfielder Paul Pogba's dropping has led to some unhappiness around Old Trafford, despite the team being sat in second place at the start of the weekend. Second for Man Utd is not good enough at the best of times but when the leader is local rivals City it feels a lot worse. The Red Devils do have an excellent home record, 10 wins and just one loss in 13 home games shows how well they have performed there. Just five goals conceded, compared to 29 scored suggests this will be a very difficult task for Chelsea to get anything from this game.
Most important player: Romelu Lukaku. The striker has not been getting the kind of service he would like of late which means he has to be more clinical than usual.

Bakayoko (knock expected return 4th March) doubt
Luiz (knock) major doubt
Barkley (hamstring injury expected return 4th March) major doubt

A good win could put them back above Man Utd, so there is everything to play for, as they look to get back to a good run of form. They will be buouyed by a good midweek performance against Barcelona, which will have lifted the spirits ahead of playing both Manchester sides in quick succession. Defensively they have not looked as solid as last season, conceding at a rate of a goal per game on the road, which is something Antonio Conte will want to improve upon. Now he has a settled defensive unit Conte would expect that to improve as well.
Most important player: Willian. The Brazilian has been in superb form in recent weeks, looking like a Brazilian with real technique, instead of just a lot of hard work to little effect.

Defining Battle: Man Utd are at home but will Jose Mourinho go for it or will he be his usual pragmatic self and look to snatch a win? If Chelsea can press United back, they could get the crowd to show disquiet, as there have been murmurings of discontent with Jose and his defensive approach of late. The fans want to see attacking football, as well as good results, Mourinho is struggling to provide the former and the latter has slipped of late as well. Push them back and Chelsea could well get the result they need.

Editors' Predictions:
Ed002 - 0-3
Ed003 - 1-1
Ed004 - 1-1
Ed007 - 1-1
Ed018 - 1-2
Ed025 - 2-0
Ed033 - 1-1

Editor's Predictions Table
1. Ed002 - 174 points
2. Ed025 - 173 points
3. Ed018 - 168 points
4. Ed033 - 163 points
5. Ed007 - 161 points
6. Ed004 - 158 points
7. Ed003 - 153 points

*1 point is awarded for the correct result, 3 points for the correct score.
**updated 23rd February 2018 (not including results for that day)

Written by Tris Burke February 25 2018 05:09:37