After a hard fought 1-0 victory of Tottenham Hotspur, Crystal Palace make the trip to Villa Park to face Aston Villa for a spot in the EFL Cup Quarter-Finals.
The two sides have had contrasting starts to the season but both have performed when it has mattered in the cup, and will hope to do the same again to go one step closer to Wembley.
Palace were able to grind out their first league win of the season against a Spurs side that has shown inconsistency, but Villa will pose a completely different threat in this midweek fixture.
-
Tactical Changes
The weekend saw Oliver Glasner remain faithful to his 3-4-2-1 system that has brought mixed results over the course of the season, but it seemed to finally do the trick against Spurs.
The Eagles had 34% possession compared to their opponents 66%, but still managed to win after capitalising on a Micky van de Ven mistake. The Dutch centre-back lost the ball inside his own box, allowing Daniel Muñoz to deliver into the box, and after an exquisite flick by Eberechi Eze, Jean-Philippe Mateta was on hand to sore for the Eagles.
Both teams threatened to add to the score line, but Palace were wasteful in front of goal, failing to capitalise from 14 shots, six on target and 43% shot accuracy, but they were able to dominate the opposition.
The South London side have not had an issue when it comes to taking shots, but rather being clinical when they do decide to shoot. The Palace attackers have struggled all season with putting the ball in the back of the net and the defence has been unable to compensate for the lack of a cutting edge by supporting the side with clean sheets. Perhaps the recent result was the start of a change in that trend.
Defensively Glasner's side were impressive, denying Spurs a way back into the match. The Eagles led in tackle attempts, clearances and interceptions, telling a story of a resolute defensive performance, especially against a side that enjoys quick transitions in their attacks.
Palace’s shape probably contributed to their defensive performance, using three centre-backs alongside Jefferson Lerma and Adam Wharton in a midfield pivot to force any meaningful attacks out wide. Spurs’ 517 passes evidently left them with more time on the ball than they would have hoped for, and more players to break down in a side that clearly struggle against a low block.
For the first time this season, you could see Crystal Palace playing to get the three points, taking an early lead and not looking to lose it. It was not always glamorous, and a goal conceded could have put their game plan into jeopardy, but it worked out exactly as they had hoped for the first time this season.
The Eagles can take comfort that they have already played Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool alongside Spurs and only lost to the Reds, which is admirable and shows the potential.
If they can defend as well as they did against Spurs, a clean sheet could be on the cards and possibly the victory, but nothing is guaranteed in a cup fixture.
-
Importance of the wide areas
Whilst the congestion of the middle of the pitch has been spoken about, the wide areas of the pitch could be important against Aston Villa.
They tend to line up on a 4-4-1-1, but the players used could provide a 4-3-3 shape on occasion, with John McGinn shifting into the central midfield and Jacob Ramsey joining the attack.
Unai Emery has worked wonders with a group of players who were in a relegation scrap almost two years ago, and that is mostly down to the tactics allowing his players to utilise their strengths whilst covering up their faults.
Taking the wide areas of the pitch, McGinn continues to be one of the hardest workers in the team, with Matty Cash behind him doing the majority of the defensive work in the right-back position. Sometimes Leon Bailey will play on the right as well, a different, more dynamic type of player out wide. Certainly a more direct attacking player than McGinn.
This range of players that Unai Emery can call upon will leave Palace guessing as to how Villa will play at any given time, and it could be especially dangerous given the rotation a cup match can bring.
As for Crystal Palace, Muñoz has remained key on that right hand side, winning the ball in the Spurs box for that early goal and generally being a nuisance high up the pitch. The security in defensive shape centrally allows him to bomb forward, and he will likely get joy again should he start in midweek.
The issue for the Eagles is the lack of like-for-like backup to Muñoz, and dropping him is likely the most harmful thing that Oliver Glasner can do.
Nathaniel Clyne clearly is not the player he used to be, and is unable to replicate the role of the Colombian.
-
Key players
There are a few backup players who may be of more importance in this midweek fixture, with Eddie Nketiah being the biggest name of them.
A player who never really found a starting role at Arsenal, his move to Palace is yet to take kickstart.
Unfortunately for Nketiah, he has been unable to cement a starting postion, but the EFL Cup may well be his chance to prove that he deserves more minutes in the Premier League.
A different type of striker to Mateta, one who generally relies on pace and positioning rather than physicality, Nketiah will be aiming to get in behind the Villa defence and take his chances against the goalkeeper whether he’s playing in the middle or on the flank.
As for Aston Villa, look no further than Ross Barkley to provide the creativity for the side in claret and blue.
After being a key man in a Luton side that fought until the final day, he was picked up by Villa in the hopes that his career was well and truly back on track.
So far this season he has mainly been restricted to bench appearances, but he comes off the back of an equaliser against Bournemouth and with his side visiting Spurs on the weekend and Club Brugge in seven days time, Unai Emery will certainly look to rotate his team and give some players a chance to fight for their spot.
It will be difficult for Crystal Palace to find a result, but the magic of the cup lives on. It is what dreams are made of, and a potential European spot is at stake.
