Bournemouth look set on course to finish with a higher points tally this season in the Premier League than they managed last term so it’s fair to say the Cherries are having a decent season. Meanwhile, Crystal Palace are way off their points tally from last season, a consequence of their inability to gather any sort of real momentum this season.
The Cherries were busy in the transfer market in a bid to strengthen their squad, recruiting the likes of Tyler Adams from Championship side Leeds, Hammed Junior Traorè from Sassuolo, Alex Scott from Bristol City, Milos Kerkez from AZ Alkmaar, Romain Faivre from Olympique Lyon, Justin Kluivert from AS Roma and Max Aarons from Norwich. Players who joined on loan include Enes Ünal from Getafe, Luis Sinisterra from Leeds, and Andrei Radu from Inter Milan.
In terms of departures, Bournemouth let some players leave on loan including Hammed Junior Traorè to SSC Napoli, Romain Faivre to FC Lorient, David Brooks to Southampton, Jaidon Anthony to Leeds, Joe Rothwell to Southampton, Kieffer Moore to Ipswich, Mark Travers to Stoke City, Jamal Lowe to Swansea, Emiliano Marcondes to Hibernian FC, James Hill to Blackburn, Gavin Kilkenny to Fleetwood and Will Dennis to Kilmarnock FC while Jefferson Lerma, Jordan Zemura and Jack Stacey sealed free transfers to Crystal Palace, Udinese Calcio, and Norwich respectively.
Crystal Palace added some new faces to their team throughout the transfer window, signing Matheus França from Brazilian club side Flamengo, Adam Wharton from Blackburn, Daniel Munoz from KRC Genk, English goalkeeper Dean Henderson from Premier League giants Manchester United, Rob Holding from Arsenal and Jefferson Lerma from Bournemouth on a free transfer.
The Eagles also let go of the likes of Luka Milivojevic, Jack Butland, Wilfred Zaha, and Vicente Guaita who left for Shabab Al-Ahli, Rangers, Galatasaray, and Celta de Vigo respectively on free transfers while Malcom Ebiowei and Luke Plange sealed loan moves to RWDM and Carlisle United respectively.
The Cherries are having a pretty decent season by their standards, gathering a total of 32 points from 27 games so far this season in the PL to sit in 13th place on the league standings. They are seven points shy of their 39-point tally from last season which saw them finish in 15th place with eleven games to go in the Premier League. Bournemouth have recorded 8 wins, 8 draws, and 11 losses so far this season, scoring 37 goals and conceding 49 goals which leaves them with a 12-goal deficit.
Andoni Iraola’s men seem to have hit a bad patch of form in recent weeks, managing just one win in their last five matches while drawing two and losing another two. A 3-1 loss to Fulham kicked off this rough patch followed by a 2-2 draw with Newcastle United at St James’ Park and another loss, this time to defending champions Manchester City. The Cherries got back to winning ways with a 2-0 win over league stragglers Burnley before playing out another 2-2 draw against bottom-feeders Sheffield United.
Crystal Palace have looked out of sorts so far in the Premier League this season. The league campaign is in its latter stages and the Eagles are yet to take off form-wise. Palace is in 14th place on the Premier League table with 29 points from 28 games, recording 7 wins, 8 draws, and 13 losses at the time of writing. They have scored 33 times this season, the second lowest by teams outside relegation waters and they have let in 48 goals, bringing their goal deficit to -15.
The Eagles have had to endure poor form for most of the season, their results in recent weeks being a fair reflection of how unstable their season has been. Their last five matches have ended in 1 win, 2 draws and 2 losses. A 3-1 defeat against Chelsea at Selhurst Park was responded to with a 1-1 draw against Brighton. Palace gave their fans something to cheer about as they beat relegation-embattled Burnley 3-0 at Selhurst Park before going on to lose 3-1 to Tottenham Hotspur and then playing a 1-1 draw with Luton Town.
Head-to-head records show that Bournemouth and Crystal Palace have played 14 matches between them. The Cherries have won 3 times (scoring 14 goals) while The Eagles have won 6 times (scoring 21 goals) with 5 draws.
Match tickets
The epic match at Vitality Stadium in Bournemouth kicks off on Tuesday, 2nd of April 2024 at 18:45 GMT.
The magnificent 11,379-capacity stadium will host this clash between the two teams trying to pull away from the bottom three.
Getting tickets for the Bournemouth vs Crystal Palace tickets could take a lot of work given the standard of this game. Hence, you are advised to search ticket reselling sites should they be expectedly sold out on each club’s channels.
Team news
Line-ups
Injury concerns for The Cherries include Ryan Fredericks (calf), Max Aarons (hamstring), Marcos Sensei (hamstring), Llyod Kelly (hip) and James Hill (ankle)
Bournemouth: Neto, Smith, Mepham, Zabarnyi, Kerkez, Christie, Cook, Semenyo, Kluivert, Tavernier, Solanke
The Eagles have a long list of injured players including Rob Holding (ankle), Nathan Ferguson (hamstring), Michael Olise (hamstring), Matheus Franca (groin), Marc Guehi (knee), Jesurun Rak-Sakyi (hamstring), Jeffrey Schlupp (strain) and Cheick Oumar Doucouré (Achilles tendon)
Crystal Palace: Johnstone, Ward, Andersen, Richards, Munoz, Wharton, Lerma, Mitchell, Ayew, Eze, Mateta
Prediction
Iraola’s Cherries play with controlled aggression and are defensively solid. By embracing counter-pressing, they harmonize with their opponents enabling them to match the play style of the opposition and level the playing field.
Meanwhile, out of possession, Crystal Palace play in a low block, looking to neutralize attacking threats from opposing teams. In possession, they build up from the back and look to make the most of their time on the ball.
Bournemouth 2-1 Crystal Palace