Arsenal vs Crystal Palace Lineups, Preview, Prediction and Team News | EFL Cup, December 18, 2024

Arsenal vs Crystal Palace Preview

• Competition: EFL Cup.
• Date: Wednesday, December 18.
• Time: 7:30 PM GMT.
• Venue: Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal vs Crystal Palace will take place in the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup at the Emirates Stadium on December 18 as the Gunners will host Premier League rivals Palace in a London derby.

The Gunners will enter this game on the back of a good run of form. They have won three of their last five matches across competitions, drawing two of the other games. In those games, they scored a decent return of 11 goals and conceded just three as they have looked solid at the back. However, with two draws in their last three games, the goals have dried up a bit at Arsenal and they will look to rectify this issue ahead of their quarter-final clash.

The Eagles, on the other hand, will also enter this game on the back of a recent unbeaten run. They have won two of their last five games across competitions and have secured draws in the other three matches in this run. Crystal Palace have scored nine goals in these games, but have also conceded six goals, keeping just one clean sheet. They defeated Brighton & Hove Albion 3-1 away from home last time out and will draw confidence from that result.

On that note, let’s take a look at the team news from both camps.

Arsenal Team News

Manager Mikel Arteta fielded a full-strength lineup in his team’s 0-0 draw against Everton last time out. However, the Spaniard is expected to shuffle his lineup considerably for the upcoming match due to fixture congestion as well as load management. Quite a few of the Gunners’ youth players are expected to get starts. Meanwhile, no new injuries to report from the camp as Oleksandr Zinchenko, Riccardo Calafiori, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Benjamin White remain sidelined.

Crystal Palace Team News

Manager Oliver Glasner fielded a strong lineup as his team secured a comfortable 3-1 win against Brighton away from home last time. While there were no new injuries to report from that match, Glasner will be without three players for the next one. Matheus Franca, Adam Wharton and Joel Ward are all sidelined with injuries and will miss the next game.

Predicted Lineups

Arsenal Predicted Lineup (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: David Raya.

Defenders: Ayden Heaven, William Saliba, Jakub Kiwior, Myles Lewis-Skelly.

Midfielders: Ethan Nwaneri, Jorginho (C), Thomas Partey.

Forwards: Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard.

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Crystal Palace Predicted Lineup (3-4-2-1)

Goalkeeper: Dean Henderson.

Defenders: Trevoh Chalobah, Maxence Lacroix, Marc Guehi (C).

Midfielders: Daniel Munoz, Will Hughes, Jefferson Lerma, Tyrick Mitchell.

Forwards: Ismaila Sarr, Eberechi Eze, Jean-Philippe Mateta.

Arsenal vs Crystal Palace Head-to-Head Record

These two teams meet at least twice every calendar year given their presence in the Premier League, as well as due to two English cup competitions. The recent head-to-head record, however, favours the hosts for the next one heavily. Arsenal have won four of their last five meetings, with Crystal Palace winning the other one.

Key Players to Watch

Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal)

Nwaneri will likely be given a start against Palace in the upcoming EFL Cup quarter-finals. This is mainly down to the rotation policy put in place by Mikel Arteta, who will give his younger players a run out against familiar foes with the hopes that they will perform.

Ismaila Sarr (Crystal Palace)

The forward will enter the next game on the back of a great run of form. He scored a brace and assisted another goal in Palace’s 3-1 win against the Seagulls. Sarr will look to replicate that performance in the next match as well.

Arsenal vs Crystal Palace Prediction

If the recent head-to-head is anything to go by, then the Gunners should breeze through this fixture and secure an easy win.

Prediction: Arsenal 3-1 Crystal Palace

Where to watch Arsenal vs Crystal Palace live?

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