Matchday two of the Premier League sees Crystal Palace host Nottingham Forest in a match that is sure to be a fiery one for off-the-pitch reasons. Nottingham Forest were promoted to the Europa League spot that was lost by Palace after UEFA determined that they were in breach of multi-club ownership rules. This, of course, has set off a feud between the two sides, who will clash for the first time this season.
Both sides got off to positive starts as Palace held Chelsea to a 0-0 draw at Stamford Bridge, whilst Nottingham Forest defeated Brentford 3-1 at the City Ground. It ended even in this fixture last season with as the pair drew 1-1. Eberechi Eze scored for Palace that day - the Englishman has now departed South London, making the move to Arsenal.
Palace will want to pick up points in their first home game of the season, but history is not on their side. The Eagles have lost 12 of their 16 opening home matches throughout their time in the Premier League, but they will be hoping that this one ends differently.
Team News:
Despite continuing rumours around his exit, it looks like Marc Guehi will once again lead the Crystal Palace backline. Chris Richards is likely to come back into the squad after Jefferson Lerma occupied his position midweek in the Conference League.
Daichi Kamada is close to returning for Palace, but this match comes too soon for him, whilst Eddie Nketiah, Chadi Riad, Cheick Doucoure and Matheus Franca remain out for the hosts.
Devenny can once again expect to be the player called upon to fill the void of the now-departed Eze.
For Forest, it could be quite an exciting day as three new signings in James McAtee, Omari Hutchinson, and Arnaud Kalimuendo, can all be expected to be in the matchday squad.
Nicolas Dominguez remains the only Nottingham Forest player to be out of contention with an injury.
It is expected to be quite a similar team who opened the season in impressive fashion against Brentford.
Predicted Lineup
Crystal Palace:
Henderson; Munoz, Richards, Lacroix, Guehi, Mitchell; Hughes, Wharton; Sarr, Mateta, Devenny
Nottingham Forest:
Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams; Sangaré, Anderson; Ndoye, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Wood
Key Players:
Jean-Philippe Mateta:
When one star player departs, another has to step up. This is exactly what Mateta needs to do and has already done against Fredrikstad midweek. The Frenchman is Palace's main source of threat and will have to work that little bit harder now Eze is no longer there.
He usually is clinical, so if given the chance, he can punish Nottingham Forest in front of goal. The striker will need to rely on his fellow attackers to provide him with opportunities to strike. Mateta is sure to have a big say in this match.
Morgan Gibbs-White:
One thing that was evident in matchday one was that the Crystal Palace defence is a very stubborn one to break down. If anyone in the Forest team has the capability to do so, it is certainly Morgan Gibbs-White.
He provided the assist for Dan Ndoye's headed goal last week. With a target man like Chris Wood up front, if Gibbs-White is as impressive with his creativity as he usually is, then the Palace defence may be breached for the first time this Premier League season.