Hull City travel to Selhurt Park on the back of a wretched run of form which has seen them tether on the edge of relegation zone only on goal difference.
Steve Bruce’s side are level on points with Leicester City whose recent good form has given them a realistic hope of surviving. Hull have lost four and drawn two of their last six games, and upcoming matches against Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United mean that they must win in South London on Saturday.
Alan Pardew on the other hand has in all likelihood secured another season of top flight football for Crystal Palace and four wins from their last five matches has put them firmly in the comforts of mid-table when a relegation battle looked to be on the cards, all those months back when Pardew joined.
Having lost to West Brom at the weekend, Palace will be looking to bounce back with a win against a side that hasn’t claimed three points for over two months and with just two away wins all season.
Having started off in the Europa League, Hull are under a serious threat of playing in the Championship next season and looking at the fixture list, there doesn’t seem much they can do to save their season now.
Team News
Crystal Palace
Palace are without Jerome Thomas, Jordon Mutch, Jonathan Williams, Fraizer Campbell and Marouane Chamakh who miss out due to injuries while Chung-yong Lee is a doubt with a leg injury.
Hull City
Curtis Davies is out with a thigh injury while David Meyler remains suspended.
Nikica Jelavic is out with a knee injury while Gaston Ramirez is a slight doubt as he recovers from a hamstring injury.
Last Five Meetings
04 Oct 2014 Hull City 2 – 0 Crystal Palace Premier League
28 Jan 2014 Crystal Palace 1 – 0 Hull City Premier League
23 Nov 2013 Hull City 0 – 1 Crystal Palace Premier League
05 Mar 2013 Crystal Palace 4 – 2 Hull City Championship
27 Nov 2012 Hull City 0 – 0 Crystal Palace Championship
Interesting Statistics
- Hull have won just two out of 17 away games in the Premier League season.
- Hull have failed to score in 5 of their last 7 away matches in the Premier League.
- Crystal Palace are undefeated in their last 7 home matches against Hull in all competitions.
- The 2-0 loss in the reverse fixture was Palace’s first in eight against the Tigers.
- Palace have averaged the lowest possession in the league this season (40.3%)
- Palace commit the most fouls per game on an average in the Premier League (13.5).
- Palace have scored the joint second highest set piece goals in the Premier League (14).
Key Players
Crystal Palace: Yannick Bolasie
French-born Congoloese professional has been the subject of interest from Liverpool, though his manager slapped a €56 million price tag on him. Having not scored in the league for almost seven months, Bolasie stopped that drought with a brilliant hat-trick at the Stadium of Light a fortnight ago. His stock has been on the rise since the season progressed, and though he couldn’t find the back of the net, he has always been a major threat with his dribbling skills, pace and trickery. It looks unlikely that the 25-year-old will be with Palace next season though the fans will be hoping they get to see him tearing down fullbacks in the remaining few games.
Hull City: Ahmed Elmohamady
The ever present Egyptian has also been Hull City’s most consistent performer this season, appearing in a variety of positions, including wide midfielder, wing-back and right-back.
Suprisingly, he wins 3.1 aerials per game while making 1.8 interceptions as well as tackles. 1.7 key passes show that the 27-year-old has an impact in the final third of the pitch as well, and Hull will need him to be influential against Palace for them to have a chance of grabbing a much needed three points.
His task won’t be easy given the fact that Bolasie will be operating on his side of the field, meaning Elmohamady has to be on the top his game.
Prediction
This will be a close run thing, but the difference in the two teams’ season will show with Palace grabbing a narrow win to push Hull on the brink of relegation.
