Crystal Palace vs Arsenal Preview: Team News & Prediction
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Neither of these two teams will be too bothered about the actual game at Selhurst Park as both sides look ahead to more important things in the coming week.
Kick-off date/time:
How to watch on TV: UK – Sky Sports / USA – CNBC
How to watch online: UK – Sky Go / USA – Hulu+
Crystal Palace preview: Focus on the UECL
Oliver Glasner and his Crystal Palace side have bigger things to look forward to than this dead rubber at the end of the Premier League season as the Eagles prepare for the UEFA Europa Conference League final with Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig on Wednesday night.
Palace have been focused on Europe at the back end of this season, as shown by the fact that their 2-2 draw with Brentford last weekend means that they are now winless in their last six matches in the league.
Arsenal preview: The champions
Having edged past Burnley by a goal to nil at the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal were then crowned champions 24 hours later as a result of Manchester City being held to a 1-1 draw by AFC Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium.
The Gunners do have the celebration and joy of lifting the Premier League trophy after this game but their focus will very much be on the UEFA Champions League final in Budapest next week against Paris Saint-Germain.
Crystal Palace team news: Not wholesale changes
Ahead of the visit of Arsenal down to the south of the capital city, Crystal Palace will be without United States international centre-back Chris Richards.
Glasner has said he will not rotate all 11 players but he did suggest it would be a game used for preparation with two or three changes made at half-time.
Predicted XI (3-4-3): Henderson; Clyne, Lerma, Canvot; Devenny, Kamada, Wharton, Mitchell; Johnson, Strand Larsen, Guessand
Unavailable: Richards (Injured), Doucoure (Injured), Nketiah (Injured)
Questionable: Riad (Injured)
Arsenal team news: Merino and Timber edging back
As they make the trip south, Mikel Arteta has said, on Thursday, that Mikel Merino and Jurrien Timber could return to training on Friday, albeit with the latter behind the Spaniard in terms of his recovery.
Ben White is missing for he rest of this season with the Gunners potentially able to rotate quite heavily. David Raya missed training earlier this week, too.
Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Kepa; Mosquera, Saliba, Gabriel, Hincapie; Norgaard, Lewis-Skelly; Madueke, Odegaard, Trossard; Gyokeres
Unavailable: White (Injured), Timber (Fitness) Merino (Fitness)
Questionable: Raya (Injured)
Crystal Palace vs Arsenal prediction
Crystal Palace have named reasonably strong teams in the league, despite their European commitments, but this is surely one in which Glasner does heavily rotate. As for Arsenal, the same may well be the case. Arsenal’s famous chant of ‘1-0 to the Arsenal’ came as a result of their rock-solid defence of the 2003/04 campaign when they won nine games by a goal to nil. Their 1-0 win against Burnley the other day made it eight for this iteration of the north Londoners, and so it may well be fitting that they match that total in Croydon on Sunday afternoon.
Crystal Palace vs Arsenal tip: Crystal Palace 0-1 Arsenal
