Crystal Palace vs Leicester City: 28/12/2020 – match preview and predicted starting XIs | OneFootball

Crystal Palace vs Leicester City: 28/12/2020 – match preview and predicted starting XIs | OneFootball

In partnership with

Yahoo sports
Icon: 90 Minutes At A Time

90 Minutes At A Time

·28 December 2020

Crystal Palace vs Leicester City: 28/12/2020 – match preview and predicted starting XIs

Article image:Crystal Palace vs Leicester City: 28/12/2020 – match preview and predicted starting XIs

Crystal Palace vs Leicester City

Date: 28/12/2020


OneFootball Videos


K/O: 15:00

Venue: Selhurst Park

Referee: Graham Scott

TV: Amazon Prime

A despondent and despairing Crystal Palace should be fearful of a visit from an on-form Leicester City for match-week 16’s opening fixture.

It was just over a week ago that Palace were entering match-week 14 on a three-game unbeaten run, which included seven goals and feeling like they had let it slip against then-league leaders Tottenham. Now, two games and 10 goals conceded later, the club may be at its lowest point during Roy Hodgson’s tenure.

The humbling at the hands of Liverpool could have been ignored by many Palace fans. The champions were visiting with fire in their belly and it wasn’t a game Palace were expected to win. But, after England international Tyrone Mings was sent off following a second yellow card, the Eagles should have taken control of the game against Aston Villa on Saturday just past. However, it was the Villains who looked in charge – despite enjoying less than 34% possession after Mings left the field. Dean Smith substituted off goal-scorer Bertrand Traoré, as a result, yet his side managed two more goals.

It wasn’t until deep into the second half, with 72 minutes played, that the first substitution was made by the visitors. And it was the same faces that were going on and coming off. Jairo Riedewald – October’s Palace player of the month – came on for an out of sorts Luka Milivojevic; Andros Townsend replaced an uncharacteristically oblivious Jeffrey Schlupp, and an aging James McCarthur made way for Michy Batshuayi.

There is no “plan B”, no in-game management and barely any tactical advancement. Roy Hodgson remains on thin ice; only for so long can the managerial heroics of the 2017/18 season be his saving grace.

Over these past two games, Palace have been very suspect defensively after so long being the ‘defend-and-counter’ kings. Despite the personnel not changing significantly, they have looked slower and more disorganised recently. This seems to be an attempt to improve their fortunes offensively, but they remain static and ever-reliant on individual brilliance. This style simply won’t bode well against Leicester City.

After losing their first four games against Hodgson’s Crystal Palace; Leicester, coinciding with the appointment of Brendan Rogers, have won their ensuing two games against the Eagles. With the likes of Harvey Barnes and – especially – Jamie Vardy, the Foxes have the pace and fox-like movement to trouble the forlorn Palace defence. With a fit-again and in-form-again James Maddison behind them, who is more than capable of picking apart a static defence, it will be a matter of when they score, not if.

Meanwhile, Wilfried Ndidi is more than capable of simply staying in the centre of midfield and intercepting any opposition attack. Based on the last two Palace games, his job won’t be extraordinarily difficult as their movement has too often been too slow and erratic.

Over their past couple of meetings, Leicester have triumphed without too much difficulty. Defensive mistakes – including poor man-marking at set-pieces – and clinical counter attacks have been the reasons behind the goals. Based on the recent fixtures for these two clubs, this may very well be the case again.

Team News

Crystal Palace

There were no newly accrued injuries from the defeat against Aston Villa, but the confidence of the team seems to have taken a massive hit. Hodgson has re-affirmed his stance that the starting XI does not need a mass overhaul, but fans seem to disagree.

Jairo Riedewald, Nathaniel Clyne and Tyrick Mitchell may be awarded starts after all three impressed greatly in their short stints in the XI before they were all cut short by injury this season. Gary Cahill will most likely not return until the new year is upon us.

Leicester City

Rogers may be tempted to rest key players throughout this tumultuous festive schedule of fixtures. However, the desire to maintain their place in the top four may further tempt him to name an unchanged side.

Çağlar Söyüncü could make his return from injury. But with Johnny Evans and Wesley Fofana, who has taken like a duck to water upon his introduction to the Premier League, the Turkish centre-half will most likely watch from the bench.

Predicted Starting XIs

Crystal Palace (4-4-2): Guaita; Clyne, Kouyaté, Sakho, van Aanholt; Schlupp, Riedewald, Milivojevic, Eze; Benteke, Zaha

Leicester City (4-2-3-1): Schmeichel; Justin, Fofana, Evans, Castagne; Ndidi, Tielemans; Albrighton, Maddison, Barnes; Vardy

Score Prediction: Crystal Palace 1–3 Leicester City

Leicester have the history, the pace, the form and the players to comfortably earn victory against an arguable underachieving Palace side. Theoretically, it is a slam dunk for Leicester City and Brendan Rogers. But… its Christmas; ‘tis the season of giving.

View publisher imprint