Mid-table bedfellows Crystal Palace and Wolves meet in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon. Joe Rindl has a preview and a best bets.
Football betting tips: Premier League
1pt Wilfried Zaha to score first at 32/5
0.5pts Crystal Palace to lead after 15 minutes at 15/2
For details of advised bookmakers and each-way terms, visit our transparent tipping record
Crystal Palace v Wolves
- 15:00 GMT kick-off on Sky Sports Premier League
- Match odds: Home 15/8 | Draw 11/5 | Away 6/4
It’s 13th vs 14th at Selhurst Park, with both sides locked together on 23 points. Wolves’ superior goal difference is the only thing separating the two clubs.
At 10 points above the drop zone, neither team is in must-win territory, but both managers may be pencilling in this game as a potential to kickstart their form.
Crystal Palace have just one win from their past ten games, tasting victory against bottom-side Sheffield United. Only West Brom (48) have conceded more Premier League goals this season than Crystal Palace (36).
Since beating Chelsea back in December, Wolves are winless in their last seven Premier League games. That includes losses to Burnley and rivals West Brom. The rare joy this season has been in the FA Cup. Nuno Espirito Santo’s side advanced to the fifth round thanks to scrappy 1-0 wins, their victory in the third round came at the expense of Crystal Palace.
Usually, when two out-of-form teams meet a goals-under bet is the way to go. However, both sides' goals-per-game totals fluctuate a little too much for my liking.
Palace’s last two fixtures have been goal heavy with four and five-goal matches. But their two games prior included a 1-0 defeat and goalless draw. It’s the same story with Wolves, who followed up their 3-2 loss to the Baggies with a 0-0 draw at Chelsea in their latest league games.
Wolves may be hoping to complete their first top-flight double over their opponents since 1971/72, but with all three results at such short odds I'm staying well away from backing an outright winner.
Instead, I'm taking a punt on a couple of longer odds. Firstly, Wilfried Zaha has scored nine goals in 17 Premier League appearances this term – only in 2018-19 (10) has he scored more in a single campaign in the competition. Zaha’s nine goals are more than double the next highest scorer across both teams. The forward to be 32/5 (6/1 general) as first goalscorer is a really attractive price.
And secondly, only Tottenham have scored more goals in the opening 15 minutes of Premier League games than Palace this season, with a league-high 29% of the Eagles’ goals coming in this timeframe (7/24). I’d happily throw my loose change at the hosts to be leading after 15 minutes at a big 15/2.
Those odds get even better when you realise that Wolves have conceded in the first 15 in three out of their four last league games - the only outlier being that 0-0 at Chelsea.
Score Prediction: Crystal Palace 1-1 Wolves (Sky Bet odds: 5/1)
Crystal Palace v Wolves best bets
1pt Wilfried Zaha to score first at 6/1
0.5pts Crystal Palace to lead after 15 minutes at 15/2
Odds correct at 1300 GMT (28/01/21)
Opta facts
- Wolves are looking to complete their first league double over Crystal Palace since 2008/09 in the Championship, while in the top-flight they last did so in 1971/72 under Bill McGarry.
- Wolves have already beaten Crystal Palace twice this season, once in the Premier League and once in the FA Cup; they haven’t beaten the same team three times in a season since winning three games against Reading in 2002/03.
- Crystal Palace are looking to avoid losing three consecutive Premier League games for the first time since a run of seven in June/July 2020. The Eagles have lost 0-4 and 2-3 in their last two games, last losing three in a row while conceding at least three goals each time in November 2016.
- Only West Bromwich Albion (48) have conceded more Premier League goals this season than Crystal Palace (36). The Eagles’ ratio of 1.8 goals conceded per game is their second highest in a single Premier League campaign, after 1997-98 (1.9).
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