Crystal Palace v Arsenal – January 11, 2020
At the time of writing it appears that Crystal Palace is in the midst of a terrible injury crisis. Here is an article outlining the issues they are confronted with.
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Christian Benteke is in a race to be fit for Crystal Palace’s Premier League clash with Arsenal at Selhurst Park this weekend, having missed several weeks through injury
The Belgian striker has not featured for the Eagles since Christmas, with his last appearance for Roy Hodgson’s men coming in a 1-0 defeat at Newcastle United on Saturday, December 21. The 29-year-old has played 16 times for the Eagles this season, with most of his appearances coming from the bench.
He is yet to score a goal for the Eagles in the 2019/20 campaign though, with Benteke’s last goal for Palace coming against Arsenal last April in a 3-2 win for Hodgson’s side at the Emirates Stadium.
But his return would be a boost for Hodgson to strengthen his forward options for the game, with Andros Townsend, Max Meyer and Jeffrey Schlupp among the current list of absentees for Palace.
Wilfried Zaha also missed the 1-0 defeat against Derby County in the FA Cup on Sunday, but he could return to face Arsenal, while Victor Camarasa is a doubt for the game against Arsenal, with Premier Injuries reporting that he has a calf strain.
The Eagles are also currently without Mamadou Sakho, Scott Dann, Patrick van Aanholt, Joel Ward and Jairo Riedewald, who are all sidelined through injury, while Luka Milivojevic is set to miss the game against the Gunners through suspension, after being sent off against Derby.
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Historically Arsenal has dominated Crystal Palace away from home.
| Arsenal v Crystal Palace – Div 1 Away Games | |||||||
| W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | ||
| 1 | 01-Nov-69 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2 | 13-Mar-71 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3 | 11-Apr-72 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 4 | 21-Oct-72 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 5 | 10-Nov-79 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | ||
| 6 | 26-Dec-80 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 7 | 14-Apr-90 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 8 | 10-Nov-90 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 9 | 14-Sep-91 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 | ||
| Total : | 4 | 4 | 1 | 19 | 10 | 9 | |
Overall we have only lost two games at Selhurst Park and with their list of injuries Arsenal are in a prime position to maintain that record.
| Arsenal v Crystal Palace – EPL Away Games | |||||||
| W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | ||
| 1 | 02-Nov-92 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 2 | 25-Feb-95 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3 | 18-Oct-97 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 4 | 06-Nov-04 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 5 | 26-Oct-13 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 6 | 21-Feb-15 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 7 | 16-Aug-15 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 8 | 10-Apr-17 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -3 | ||
| 9 | 28-Dec-17 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 10 | 28-Oct-18 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 11 | 11-Jan-20 | ||||||
| Total : | 6 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 11 | 6 | |
| Arsenal v Crystal Palace – ALL Away Games | ||||||
| W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | |
| Division 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 19 | 10 | 9 |
| Premier | 6 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 11 | 6 |
| Total : | 10 | 7 | 2 | 36 | 21 | 15 |
By GunnerN5
Predicted Line-up by TotalArsenal (players on the left likely to start; players on the right second option, depending on fitness of players on the left):
This is probably the strongest line-up for Arsenal given the fitness issues of our full backs, and I reckon this is close to Arteta’s blueprint for Arsenal. Nelson will keep putting pressure on Pepe (I prefer Reiss actually) and Saka really is close to first team start in either the LB or LF positions.
C O Y R R G
Bergkampesque 
Many thanks, GN5. I know you are very occupied at the moment, so this post is extra appreciated. Hodgson is a good manager and although the Eagles may have some injury issues there is no doubt he will fire his team up for this one. We need two ‘Leeds-second-half’ performances to win this one. Looking forward to it!
sure win arsenal
GN5, i would like to read your history about Palace when you are less occupied. Anyway, we should not rest on our laurels even when they are in an injury crisis. Hodgson just knows how to win against us.
TA, we need Tor to start for us alongside Xhaka, as we were more compact with them around. At the back if Kola is still not 100%, Saka is a better option there. However, i would want to start Bells at RB rather than sticking with AMN.
Looking forward to a good win.
N5. … great job, keep on trucking.
TA .. your 1st choice line up looks a sure bet. Still doesn’t mean MA hasn’t got some tough choices to make.
The 1st name on his list is Luca Torreira,
2nd is Leno
3rd is Aubameyang
4th is Ozil
5th is AMN (no cover and much improved)
6th is Luiz,
7th is Xhaka,
8th is Sokratis
9th is Laca v Martinelli with the former shading it
10th is Kola v Saka, again the former
11th is Pepe or Nelson. This is his biggest headache. Pepe is big risk big dividend. And that’s not Artena who wants his things as immaculate as his hair. H-hour and it’s Pepe’s name on the list.
Crystal Palace are miserable with injuries. 6 out, 6 doubtful. We should go on full throttle as they can’t have a bench when legs tire.
Agreed, PE, Nelson v Pepe is the biggest one. Nelson is tidy and a force all over the pitch. Pepe a man of bursts….
84, Bels…. when did we see him play last? AMN is ahead right now I think.
Well guys it has been v quiet on the blog in recent days (and not just on this one), which is just as well as I will be away till the middle of the next week and no posts will be issued in the meantime (unless Seventeenho is willing and able to do so).
Here is hoping for a good game v Palace and a Gunners’ win.
Till next week! 🙂
Enjoy whatever you’ll be doing!
Hope you have a good break TA.
Bells will be out for a while more.. that is bad news for him.
Have a good holiday TA.
That looks like our strongest line up ndeedo.
Hi fellas…Sorry to have gone silent since the Arsenal one (nil) vs Leeds in the cup match. Like I tried to say, I really appreciated LeGall’s narratives conveying what he was seeing. Of course, since then, I’ve been following the match report and player ratings put up by TA and commented upon by others. (As well, of course, to other sites and their take on things…) Things seem good in the new (Arteta) regime even if we had to ride our luck in the first half and the new manager had to get a bit animated (Arteta-mated?…) at the half-time break… And, the bounces (i.e., results) seem to be following the change in mood too…
I’m guessing that Arteta-mate isn’t the worst way of talking about the new manager and his relationship with the players. He’s not that much older and his playing days aren’t so far behind him so maybe there’s a greater kinship with all the issues players (of the real, live variety, not just chess pieces…) go through, including fatigue (both physical and mental) and other elements that affect motivation, energy levels and other things that help guys execute the manager’s ideas. Whatever it is, the players seem to have bought in and are even enjoying (having fun…) giving that little bit extra that can make all the difference. Having yet to actually watch an Arteta coached matched, however, it’s hard to weigh in on differences in the players’ individual performances or on the systems that the new manager might be trying to bring into play. Maybe this could be a good topic for a quick post to try and keep discussion going…
Tomorrow’s match could be a tough one for me in terms of leading a live-blog, but still, I’m gonna give it a try. Mi amigo Felipe (who has lived in this little beach pueblo for around 40 of his 45 years–and also has served as my real estate agent in the summer and is now my concrete, plumbing, electric, window and door expert, not to mention fishing, hiking and shopping guide…) has family out of town so maybe there are a couple of televisions at his disposal that might be carrying the match. It is, however, a 6:30 am kickoff, so that’s an additional issue…
Regardless, I’ll try and put up a live-blog post, and others (J-Dub, LeGall, Eris, who else?…) can add their comments even if I cannot watch. It could be fun, right?…
😀
Sounds good 17ht. At least you are taking over when TA’s not in town.
P.S: I want an amigo like Felipe. Having friends who knows everything is so good. Just one friend will do. 😉
Indeed, JK…. Felipe is an excellent guey (meaning: dude)… We’ll see, however, if he gets me in front of a television (which hopefully carries the match) early morning tomorrow… I need to be respectful, of course, about inviting myself into other people’s homes, even if (or maybe especially…) they’re not around…
In the meantime, however… There’s a…
NEW POST!!