If I was to say “I don’t know what to think about this one”, you’d probably think “crikey Badger, you’ve said that a few times this season”. And you’d be right, because I have.
The trouble is, my immediate thoughts are to say I think we’ll win this game.
But for pretty much all of the season, Villa have failed to do what the average fan has expected. It’s worked both ways, mind and just as we put up an excellent fighting display against Liverpool when I think many expected a sound beating, so we’ve failed to win games that we would have assumed to be a shoe-in, such as Ipswich at home. That one particularly sticks in my mind and it’s that sort of result that really rankles me.
Squad news is that Konsa and Bailey both face late fitness tests. I’d say that Bailey won’t get a chance now we have the newcomers, but Unai seems to love him, hence I’d guess that if the player is fit, he will start. Konsa, of course would be a welcome return, albeit I don’t think he’s been at his best this season. Pau, Kamara and Onana are all a couple of weeks away at best and Disasi is ineligible against his parent club.
As for Chelsea, Noni Madueke is out for a few weeks with a Hamsting issue and Nicolas Jackson, Marc Guiu, Benoit Badiashile, Romeo Lavia and Wesley Fofana (the only one I’ve heard of) are all long term injuries. Not that it matters much, as they have stupid amounts of players to call on. Which is something else that rankles, because I’ve literally just read that we face a big fine by Uefa for a financial breach.
Anyway, as I said, I fancy us to win this one, but I just get a sneaky feeling that we won’t and a draw seems most likely. I don’t see it being a high scoring game either and it’s most likely to be a tight affair.
Hence a 1-1 seems most likely to me and in a game where it would good to pull some points back against another Europe contender, I would be disappointed with just one at home.
Then again, watch Villa do the unthinkable again and either win easily or get soundly beaten.
It’s what we do.
UTV!
3 defeats in 5 for Forest. It’s wide open if we can string a few wins together. We haven’t been able to so far.
A win on Tuesday at Palace would be huge. But it looks unlikely. We only have Brentford away in March. With Cardiff and Brugge. This is where it gets interesting. The away form has got to change in the next two games if we’re to have any chance at all for CL qualification. It really is now or never.
Then in April we have Fulham, Brighton, Bournemouth, and Newcastle. All huge huge games.
Squeaky bum time, to quote Mr Ferguson.
Palace’s home form looks very patchy. It’s their away form that’s seen them recover well from their slow start. Our away for is dire. Conclusion: all out attack!
https://youtube.com/shorts/O_mEF6X4LGs?si=Mx51H1-KAvk9g8aQ
Onana in the tunnel after the match. Scratching my head tbh
I’m sure he’s bang on trend. I’m happy to not be…..
😆
It shows good team spirit to be at the match when you’re injured, cheering the lads on like that!
I hope he’ll be back soon.
(And they used to laugh at footballers clothes in the 1980’s but today’s are on another level!)!!!!
The midweek fixtures suggest plenty of potential for dropped points for the teams challenging for CL qualification.
Must win at Palace! Pull out all the stops and bury them.
Yup. We need to explode on them on Tuesday. We’ve needed a 90 minute statement game all season. Let’s make it at Palace!
There have been games this season where I’ve seen us look as if we were going to give somebody a good hiding – but only in patches.
Definititely time that we let-rip!
PL site on Palace:
“Mid-table obscurity beckoned for so long, but now, after winning four consecutive top-flight away matches for the very first time (and, remarkably, all to nil), Palace are surging towards new territory in the Premier League era.
Last year’s 49 points was Palace’s joint-best return in a Premier League season.
They need 17 points from the final 12 matches to beat that, or 1.42 points per match, only slightly above their current 2024/25 average of 1.27 per match.
It’s definitely on, especially with a defensive record this good. No Premier League team has kept more away clean sheets this season than Palace (six), who prevented Fulham from getting a single shot on target at Craven Cottage for the first time since May 2021.
But the challenge now is to replicate this at Selhurst Park. Palace rank fourth in the Premier League on away form (22 points from 13 matches) but 16th for home form (11 points from 13 matches).
Villa on Tuesday is an important moment. Win that one, and a record-breaking season is on the cards.”
Villa’s attack will have to really click to give us a chance.
As OLL pointed out – Villa winning a midweek evening kick off at Palace a complete unknown.
A club with a pretty poor away record against a club with a poor home record!
We will need to keep a clean sheet – not a high percentage likelihood of that.
Not feeling at all positive!
Any other oldie remember a night win v Palace? It was my nearest ground for half my life so I didn’t miss many Villa games there. We beat the Crazy Gang and Charlton while they squatted.
Horrible ground and devoid of tradition. They have changed the club colours! the badge and the nickname. They used to play in a fag packet strip of white with thin claret & sky blue stripes. The Barcelona red and blue is recent. They used to be called the Glaziers and have the Crystal Palace outline as a badge. No idea where the Eagles came from. They were the ‘team of the eighties’ – probably still are.
Their old sash strip was a touch of class. Very ‘Peru’ 1978.
The rebranding is not great. They do have some good players though! I still think we’ve got this…
It was my nearest ground for a few years too (when we lived in Beckenham for a few years in the 80’s) – and it was always pretty awful then!
Still, the fans were a bit better than the other ‘local’ teams back then – Wimbledon & Milwall…
Emery commented both Mings and Rogers face late assessments today.
More interesting was his comments about Mings – he was committed to playing Saturday even though he didn’t ’feel right’ and didn’t want to come off – it was Emery’s decision to substitute him.
As an aside, I thought Bailey looked lively when he came on and made more efforts to get to the byline rather than turning back which he’s been guilty of, of late. We need to see the Bailey of last season – be pretty useful over this latter part of the season.
Bailey did look quite useful when he came on, although I think that he’s got a lot to do to live up to the ‘promise’ he showed last season.
One of those who seems to blow hot & cold – unless he can be consistently good, I can imagine him being let-go in the summer.
Ye was a lovely kit that old one I love a kit with a sash would buzz off us doing maybe a third kit like that
Big one tonight always tough there a point would be a good result
I wonder if Bogarde will start. I always thought of him as an ‘investment’ player but he’s really shone. I think we’ve got another gem there.
He’s only 21 – great prospect, and doing well already.
Personally I’m looking forward to seeing whether Disasi will be as good as he looked against Liverpool (if we’re going to re-shuffle the back 4 again).
It comes to something when you’re counting down the hours until KO! We could actually sneak into 4th tonight even though we’ll have played a game more.
Will the footballing Gods smile on us and will we be able to capitalise?????
Looks like we are starting with the second team again.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/live/c2kgd9q4jnxt
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
More like resting players Gerry, imo.
Don’t forget we have another game on Friday (!)
Martinez, Garcia, Konsa, Disasi, Digne, Tielemans, Bogarde, McGinn, Rogers, Ramsey, Watkins.
Subs: Olsen, Zych, Mings, Maatsen, Rashford, Malen, Bailey, Asensio, Jimoh-Aloba.
Look at that bench!!!!!!!!!!! Updated my prediction to 3-1 Villa!
Is it 3 CB’s or does Bogarde play CDM to allow McGinn or Tielemans the freedom to venture forward.
I’m not confident and I would take a draw however that’s not enough to get top 4/5. I think we need to outscore them considering we will concede (probably with their first effort)
I’ve predicted 3-1 to Palace on the Super 6. Hopefully I will be wrong 🤞
This is one record we are not going to add to tonight.
The Villans have conceded a goal from their opponent’s first shot on target in 14 of 27 Premier League matches this season.
Dunno. They haven’t had a shot yet
Did anyone see Emery having a go at Palice manager over being out of his zone and returning the ball . It stated a row .
A bit of argy bargy never goes amiss!!!
Dirty Palace. Leaving the boot in or scraping studs…
Watkins has been terrible up to now. Every touch a giveaway.
Sitter. Terrible miss from Tilesman.
FFS!
0-1
Still gonna beat them.
I like your optimism Bum Bum but I think it’s misplaced.
Doubt it.
Wasn’t a corner and goal from first shot on target – AGAIN.
F’ing useless
Agreed.
Clean sheet? Will we ever see one again? 🥺
Why do we have to concede, never in trouble? It is becoming tiresome.
Pigs will fly BumBum , sorry but as you pointed out Watkins poor Rodger not in the game McGinn is , some of our players need to step up .