Key occasions
“Crystal Palace v Forest sounds like something out of The Chronicles of Narnia”, emails Peter Oh. “Even the managers’ names give off sorcerer vibes. Glasner and Espírito Santo”.
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Eze is a relative newcomer to chess, having been taught the sport via his former Palace teammate Michael Olise. He stated in 2023 that Olise, now at Bayern Munich, had offered him and his brother to the sport on the membership’s coaching floor. “That’s when I started studying it, watching YouTube videos of the best chess openings, things like that. We’re always playing something at the training ground.”
All 3 of Forest’s last video games after this one are winnable – Leicester (h), West Ham (a), Chelsea (h), by no means the perfect however now not dangerous both. Let’s examine them to the opposite 4 contenders for the highest 5
Manchester City
Southampton (a)
Bournemouth (h)
Fulham (a)
That’s now not dangerous in any respect. You would be expecting City to take a minimum of seven issues from the ones 3.
Newcastle
Chelsea (h)
Arsenal (a)
Everton (h)
Tricky. So much rests on their subsequent end result, at house to Chelsea.
Chelsea
Newcastle (a)
Manchester United (h)
Nottingham Forest (a)
That is dastardly however now not unattainable.
Aston Villa
Bournemouth (a)
Tottenham (h)
Manchester United (a)
Another tricky set of fixtures. Given they’re 7th with a deficient relative objective distinction, I’d say that will probably be an uphill fight.
Palace are unchanged from the XI that beat Aston Villa within the FA Cup semi-final. Hardly a surprise name from Glasner, Palace have been completely good at Wembley.
Forest make two adjustments from the group that misplaced at house to Brentford, with Nicolas Dominguez and Ibrahim Sangare changing the injured Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ryan Yates.
The groups!
Crystal Palace (3-4-2-1): Henderson, Richards, Lacroix, Guehi, Munoz, Wharton, Kamada, Mitchell, Sarr, Eze, Mateta.
Subs: Devenny, Chilwell, Esse, Hughes, Clyne, Franca, Nketiah, Lerma, Matthews.
Nottingham Forest (4-2-3-1): Sels, Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams, Sangare, Dominguez, Elanga, Gibbs-White, Anderson, Wood.
Subs: Carlos Miguel, Morato, Awoniyi, Toffolo, Jota Silva, Yates, Sosa, Danilo, Boly.
Preamble
Who would you reasonably be? Crystal Palace, marooned in mid-table however with an FA Cup last to return (victory through which would protected Europa League qualification) or Nottingham Forest, out of the FA Cup however nonetheless with an excellent likelihood of qualifying for the Champions League?
I say superb and now not very good as a result of Forest had been on one thing of a stinker of past due, only one win and 3 losses of their remaining 4 league video games, which isn’t in reality Champions League shape, chaps. That stated, they’re very a lot nonetheless in it. Four issues at the back of third-placed Manchester City, simply 3 issues at the back of each fourth-placed Newcastle and fifth-placed Chelsea. This sport, away at Palace, is their sport in hand. It is basically necessary that they win this night, now not most effective to position issues again at the board, but in addition trade the momentum which has just lately noticed them hurtle out of the highest 5.
Palace and Forest have each had very good seasons via their prior to now middling expectancies and this can be a superb time to be keen on both membership. Let’s hope for a excellent sport.
Kick-off: 8pm BST.