Crystal Palace will kick off their preparations for the 2021-22 campaign with a pre-season clash against Walsall at the Banks's Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The Eagles are building towards their Premier League opener against Chelsea on August 14, while Walsall will begin their League Two campaign away to Tranmere Rovers on August 7.
Match preview
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Patrick Vieira will take charge of Palace for the first time this weekend, but there will also be a new face in the opposite dugout, as former Premier League midfielder Matthew Taylor prepares to lead Walsall.
The Saddlers have already played once during pre-season, suffering a 3-1 defeat to Leamington, although it was an Under-18s side that took to the field for that match, with some staff members and players having to self-isolate for 10 days following positive coronavirus tests.
Saturday's clash with Palace will go ahead, though, and the League Two outfit are also due to take on Aston Villa and West Bromwich Albion this month before rounding off their preparations for the 2021-22 campaign with a clash against Cheltenham Town on July 31.
As mentioned, Taylor's side will open their League Two season away to Tranmere on August 7, and it will be interesting to see how the club perform in the coming campaign, having finished 19th last term.
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Palace, meanwhile, have not been in action since ending their 2020-21 Premier League campaign with a 2-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield on May 23.
It has been a summer of change for the club, with a number of players, including Andros Townsend, Patrick van Aanholt, Mamadou Sakho, James McCarthy, Gary Cahill and Scott Dann, moving on, while Vieira was confirmed as the new head coach at the start of the month.
The former Arsenal captain has promised to bring attacking football to Selhurst Park this season, and it does appear that Wilfried Zaha will be staying, while a deal for exciting teenager Michael Olise has been secured.
More new faces will arrive before the start of the new season, which begins for Palace against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on August 14, before welcoming Brentford for their first home match on August 21.
The Eagles will take on Ipswich Town, Charlton Athletic and Watford in pre-season friendlies, and the team have been stepping up their preparations during a week-long training camp at St George's Park.
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Team News
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Walsall have had a busy summer transfer window, adding nine fresh faces to the squad, and there should be some debuts for the fourth-tier outfit on Saturday afternoon.
Former Wolverhampton Wanderers defender Stephen Ward should be involved, while fellow newcomers Ash Taylor and Joss Labadie could be in the side from the first whistle.
Conor Wilkinson, Brendan Kiernan and Kieran Phillips have also arrived to boost Taylor's options in the final third of the field, and it is likely to be a mixture of youth and experience for the Saddlers against Vieira's side.
As mentioned, it has been a summer of change at Palace, with a number of experienced players moving on, but there could be a debut for Olise following his arrival from Reading.
The Eagles have beaten a number of clubs to the 19-year-old's signature, and there is every chance that he will play some minutes on Saturday afternoon.
Vicente Guaita, Jack Butland, Jairo Riedewald, Jeffrey Schlupp, James Tomkins and Zaha are all expected to be involved, while Vieira could hand opportunities to some younger players this weekend, as the Frenchman prepares to take a proper look at his squad for the first time since arriving as head coach.
Head To Head
Walsall against Palace has been a relatively regular fixture throughout the years, and it is the Eagles that lead the head-to-head record 32 victories to Walsall's 17, while there have also been 17 draws.
The last two fixtures between the two sides have been in the League Cup, with Palace running out 3-0 winners on both occasions, while they last met in the league back in 2004.
Walsall have actually not beaten Palace since a Division Three clash in January 1976, but both managers will not be too interested in the result on Saturday, rather building the fitness of their players.
We say: Walsall 1-2 Crystal Palace
It is difficult to know exactly what to expect during pre-season, as both managers will make wholesale changes during the course of the 90 minutes. Walsall are capable of giving Palace a tough match, but we are fully expecting the Premier League outfit to open their preparations for next term with a win.
Matt Law
