Crystal Palace will welcome fellow Premier League side Southampton to Selhurst Park in the FA Cup on Saturday afternoon, with a spot in the fourth round of the competition on offer for both sides.
The home side will enter the match off the back of a 4-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Tuesday, while Southampton were beaten 1-0 by Nottingham Forest on the same night.
Match preview
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Palace boss Patrick Vieira will certainly be looking for a reaction from his side on Saturday afternoon following the disappointment of the contest with Spurs. The Eagles arguably shaded the first half of action on Tuesday, but their opponents went on to score four unanswered goals in the second period.
The result left the capital side in 12th spot in the Premier League table, boasting 22 points from their opening 17 matches, which is a solid return.
The FA Cup is not a priority competition for Palace this season, with the club instead focusing on the Premier League, but they have reached two FA Cup finals, including in 2015-16, losing 2-1 to Manchester United at Wembley Stadium.
The Eagles only actually have two more league games before the end of the month, travelling to Chelsea before welcoming Newcastle United, while a tough start to February will see them head to Man United.
Palace have won their last two matches against Southampton, including a 1-0 success in the Premier League at Selhurst Park in October, while they have not lost to the Saints in front of their own supporters since January 2020.
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Nathan Jones would have been aware of the size of the task that he was taking on at Southampton, but the 49-year-old would have undoubtedly wanted to make a stronger start to his reign.
Indeed, Jones has lost each of his four league games at the helm, including a 1-0 home defeat to Nottingham Forest on Tuesday evening, which left the Saints rock bottom of the table on 12 points.
It is not quite panic stations for Southampton, as they are only three points behind 17th-placed West Ham United, with a lot of football still to play this season, but the Saints are a team short on confidence.
The cup competitions could provide a welcome distraction from the league, though, as they are also still active in the EFL Cup, preparing to face Manchester City in the quarter-finals of the competition next week.
Southampton have been runners-up in the FA Cup on three occasions, including in 2002-03, while they won the competition in 1975-76, recording a 1-0 victory over Man United in the final.
Team News
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Palace will again be missing Tyrick Mitchell through suspension, while Sam Johnstone, James McArthur and Nathan Ferguson are absent due to fitness problems.
Jack Butland will also not be involved, as he nears a loan move to Manchester United.
Head coach Vieira will make changes to the side that started against Spurs, with Jean-Philippe Mateta, Odsonne Edouard, Will Hughes, James Tomkins and Luka Milivojevic among those expected to start.
Vieira - a four-time winner of the FA Cup as a player - has fond memories of this competition, though, so he is expected to start some of his key players, including Wilfried Zaha and Marc Guehi.
As for Southampton, Armel Bella-Kotchap will be absent due to the injury that he picked up against Forest in the Premier League on Tuesday night.
Valentino Livramento, Juan Larios and Theo Walcott will also definitely miss out through injury, while Alex McCarthy remains a doubt due to an ankle issue.
There will be changes from the side that started against Forest, with Duje Caleta-Car, Adam Armstrong, Joe Aribo, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Moussa Djenepo potentially all coming into the XI for this contest.
Crystal Palace possible starting lineup:
Guaita; Clyne, Tomkins, Guehi, Ward; Hughes, Milivojevic, Schlupp; Mateta, Edouard, Zaha
Southampton possible starting lineup:
Bazunu; Caleta-Car, Lyanco, Salisu; Walker-Peters, Ward-Prowse, Aribo, Perraud; A Armstrong, Mara, Djenepo
We say: Crystal Palace 2-1 Southampton
It is always difficult to know what to expect when two Premier League sides meet in the early rounds of the FA Cup, as both managers will make changes to their sides. Southampton are really difficult to back at the moment due to their struggles, though, so we have had to side with the home team on this occasion.
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Top tip
Matt Law
