English Premier League Game-week 33 Match Previews and Analysis: Wolves vs Crystal Palace

With just six rounds to go, the atmosphere is really tense. There is so much pressure on elite teams and quotidian EPL members alike. From fighting and vying for the 31st Premier League crown to competing for a top-four spot which would guarantee a berth in next season’s edition of the UEFA Champions League to aiming for at least top six or seven which would translate into an appearance in either the UEFA Europa League or Conference League as the case may be. There are also teams who are struggling to avoid being swept away by the relegation flood, to have least have another go at English Premier League football in the 2023/24 season.

The past weekend was eventful, action-packed and filled with a lot of drama. We saw Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal drop points for yet the third consecutive game in another unfortunate draw to bottom placed Southampton. We also saw Newcastle thrash fellow top-four contenders Tottenham 6-1 as the club moved closer to achieving their first Champions League qualification in 20 years. We saw Liverpool defeat Nottingham Forest 3-2. It was also a little less noisy as we didn’t get to see Erling Haaland and Manchester City go on another carnaged rampage, Erik Ten Hag and Manchester United, Frank Lampard and a presently distraught Chelsea side.

Wolves vs Crystal Palace

Two teams in the second half of the table. The stakes are not really high in this fixture as both teams have nothing special or disastrous to expect next season. 14th placed Wolves go head-to-head against 12th placed Crystal Palace.
The Wanderers for the past two seasons, finished somewhere around the middle of the Premier League 20-step ladder ever since they got promoted to top-tier action, whilst they ended a little higher in the two preceding seasons, their first and second seasons in the Premier League since 2011/12; 2018/19 and 2019/20, where they finished 7th in both seasons.

Roy Hodgson and Palace sit twelfth on the table, the same position they finished last season, two points(37) behind Chelsea(39). A slip or fall to the danger zone is very unlikely but the Eagles would definitely want to play for pride and self-confidence.

Last match: Wolves

Coming after a 1-0 win against Frank Lampard’s Chelsea and a 2-0 triumph over 10th placed Brentford, Julen Lopetegui’s men fell to a 2-1 defeat to struggling Leicester at the King Power Stadium. Even though the Wanderers took the lead through a 13th minute Matheus Cunha strike, The Foxes got two over their opponents to claim all three points thanks to a neatly dispatched spot-kick from Iheanacho and a 75th minute winner from Timothy Castagne. With Julen Lopetegui and his team left with nothing to contend for, it was Leicester City’s to win.

Last match: Crystal Palace

The Selhurst Park natives managed a single point stalemate against Everton on Saturday with both sides having chances to spare across the duration of the match. The tie did see Everton’s Mason Holgate receive his marching orders after the right-back received a second yellow card for a rash challenge on Jordan Ayew in the 80th minute. Roy Hodgson’s men couldn’t take advantage of the numerical superiority and The Toffees were able to see out the remainder of the game.

Last Encounter:

The Wanderers would be looking to get retribution when they go up against The Eagles at Molineux Stadium. Palace came from behind to claim a 2-1 win over the former when both sides met back in October. With Adama Traore’s header giving Wolves the early lead, The Eagles fought back with two goals. Eze ignited the second half of play just two minutes off the clock with a header of his own before Wilfried Zaha sealed up the comeback with a fine strike of his from just inside the box.

Head-to-Head:

Both sides have met 22 times with Crystal Palace claiming seven wins compared to Wolves’ eight wins. Seven of the fixtures between the two teams have ended in draws.

Key stats:

• • None of both teams have scored more than two goals against the other in a single game across the 22 fixtures recorded

• • Crystal Palace are on a four-game winning streak against Tuesday night’s opponents, having defeated them 2-1, 2-0 twice and 1-0 in their last three encounters.

• • The game against the Toffees would be Roy Hodgson’s fifth game in charge of The Eagles, with the 75-year old having taken over managerial duties since March 21.

• • In all of Hodgson’s games in charge of Palace, The Eagles have thrived with three wins and a draw

Key players:

Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace; 7 goals, 4.6xG)

Injuries:

Crystal Palace:

Nathaniel Clyne (Knee injury), Wilfried Zaha (Hamstring injury), Nathan Ferguson (Achilles tendon injury)

Wolves:

Boubacar Traore (Groin injury), Sasa KalNathaniel Clyne (Knee injury), Wilfried Zaha (Hamstring injury), Nathan Ferguson (Achilles tendon injury), Sasa Kalajdzic (Cruciate Ligament Rupture), Chiquinho(Cruciate Ligament injury)

Possible line-ups:

Crystal Palace: Johnstone, Ward, Andersen, Guehi, Mitchell, Eze, Doucoure, Schlupp, Olise, Edouard, Ayew (4-3-3)

Wolves: Sa, Gomes, Kilman, Dawson, Semedo, Sarabia, Lemina, Gomes, Nunes, Costa, Cunha,
(4-4-2)

Main image credit Embed from Getty Images