Bournemouth vs Crystal Palace

Vitality Stadium forms the backdrop for a bottom-half Premier League meeting between high-flying Bournemouth and underperforming Crystal Palace.

Seamus Coleman’s comic late own goal inspired Bournemouth to a hard-earned 2-1 home win against Everton at the weekend, extending their uptick in form to three victories in their last four Premier League outings (D1). Andoni Iraola’s free-firing squad has bagged multiple goals in all four top-flight matches since the start of March, highlighting the potential for pulling off their first-ever league double against Crystal Palace following a comfortable 2-0 victory in the reverse fixture. On the downside, the Cherries have only won one of their six top-flight home meetings with the London outfit (D2, L3), losing the last two in a row via an identical 2-0 scoreline. If it’s any consolation, Bournemouth’s three consecutive home league games in the build-up to this encounter have seen over 2.5 goals and both teams on the scoresheet, with the Boscombe side scoring 2+ goals on each occasion.

On the other hand, Crystal Palace squandered a slender halftime lead in a 1-1 away draw against Nottingham Forest at the weekend, stretching their disappointing winless league streak to three matches (D2, L1). Despite failing to win a Premier League contest since February, the Eagles come into this matchday eight points clear of the bottom three and with a game in hand on 18th-placed Luton. But Palace’s travel sickness is long-standing, with new manager Oliver Glasner bidding to lead his side to their first top-flight win on hostile turf since early November. A ten-game winless league run on the road requires the German’s undivided attention (D4, L6), not least because Palace’s Premier League status is far from a foregone conclusion.