Crystal Palace and Aston Villa face off in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley on Saturday, with a spot in the final up for grabs.
Crystal Palace have done well vs Aston Villa in their recent meetings, and they are unbeaten in their last four matches against the West Midlands outfit. The Eagles will certainly fancy their chances of getting a good result here.
Though the South London outfit are in a disappointing run of form right now, they have the quality to bounce back strongly. The Eagles are coming into this game on the back of just one win from their last six matches in all competitions.
Meanwhile, Aston Villa ended their winning streak with a defeat against Manchester City last time. The Villans have been in impressive form lately, and they will certainly fancy their chances of booking their place in the FA Cup final. They have picked up wins over PSG and Newcastle United recently. They will be full of confidence here.
Team News & Tactics
Crystal Palace
Oliver Glasner will be without Chadi Riad and Cheick Doucoure due to their long-term knee injuries. Crystal Palace will shape up in a 3-4-1-2 formation vs Aston Villa, with Dean Henderson in goal.
Chris Richards will start alongside Maxence Lacroix and Marc Guehi in the back three. They will look to keep things compact at the back. Daniel Munoz and Tyrick Mitchell will start as the wing-backs. They will look to help out at both ends of the pitch.
As for the midfield unit, Will Hughes and Adam Wharton will add creativity and defensive cover to the side. Eberechi Eze and Ismaila Sarr will start in the attacking midfield roles, and they will look to link up with striker Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Henderson; Richards, Guehi, Lacroix; Munoz, Hughes, Wharton, Mitchell; Sarr, Eze; Mateta
Aston Villa
Unai Emery will be without Axel Disasi, who is ineligible for this game. Aston Villa will shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation vs Crystal Palace in the FA Cup semi-final, with Emiliano Martinez in goal.
Matty Cash and Lucas Digne will start as the full-backs. They will look to contribute at both ends of the pitch. Ezri Konsa will pair up at the heart oftdefence alongside Pau Torres.
As for the midfield unit, John McGinn and Youri Tielemans will look to add control and drive to the side. Leon Bailey and Marcus Rashford will add pace, flair and creativity from the wide areas.
Meanwhile, Morgan Rogers will start as the attacking midfielder, and he will look to create goal-scoring opportunities for his teammates. Finally, Ollie Watkins will lead the line for Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace on Sunday.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne; McGinn, Tielemans; Bailey, Rogers, Rashford; Watkins
Key Stats
- Aston Villa have won none of their last four matches vs Crystal Palace in all competitions (D1 L3), conceding 13 goals. Palace knocked them out of the EFL Cup earlier this season, with Tottenham Hotspur the only side to eliminate them from both the FA and League Cups in the same campaign in 1968/69.
- 22 goals have been scored in the last six matches between these two teams.
- Both teams have scored in four of the last five matches between these two teams.
- Crystal Palace have one win from the last six matches in all competitions.
- Aston Villa have four wins from the last six matches in all competitions.
Player to Watch
Ollie Watkins
The Aston Villa striker is our key player to watch out for. Unai Emery will need him to step up and deliver if the Villans want to reach the finals of the cup competition. Watkins has enjoyed an impressive season, and he could make a huge difference for his team in the final third. The Englishman will look to link up with his teammates and hold up the ball.
Watkins will help create opportunities for the Aston Villa players, and he will look to get on the score sheet as well. Crystal Palace have been quite vulnerable defensively, and they have conceded 14 goals in the last six matches in all competitions. They will struggle to contain a top-class striker like Watkins.
Prediction
Crystal Palace 1-2 Aston Villa
Both teams will be for to book their place in the final of the FA Cup, and they will look to pick up a win here. There is no doubt that they have the quality to grind out a victory here, and this is likely to be a close contest.
On paper, Aston Villa are the better team, and they are in better form as well. They have more quality and depth in the attacking unit and a manager who knows what it takes to grind out important results in the latter stages of tournaments. Aston Villa are likely to edge this one. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-1 win for Unai Emery and his charges.
