Crystal Palace

Tom Gayle
BBC Match of the Day commentator at Molineux

Image source, Getty Images

The sight of a footballer who tucks their shirt in is rare, but of the few who still do, there is no one pulling off this look with more swagger right now than Jean-Philippe Mateta.

Saturday's tap-in against Wolves was his 13th Premier League goal of the season, 10 of which have come in the past 12 games - numbers only bettered by Chelsea's Cole Palmer with 11.

Having scored just seven league goals across his two previous campaigns, there appears to be three possible explanations as to why he has become one of the most talked about players in English football.

Look to social media and it is the tucking in of his shirt.

Journalists (myself included) and pundits will point to either the arrival of manager Oliver Glasner, or the 'assistance' from Ebere Eze and Michael Olise.

I asked the softly spoken Frenchman whether his form was down to 'Glasner ball' - a notion that was swiftly rejected. Instead, he credited the creativity of the whole team, and not just Eze and Olise, for turning him into a confident goal machine.

"When you have chances and you score, it gives a good feeling to the team," he said. "It makes you keep running and you do more and more."

His comments are backed up by the stats. Nine different players have provided assists for Mateta's goal haul this season, with Eze the only one to do it twice.

Understandably this streak will be treated with caution by sceptics. Only time will tell if this will go down as a one-season wonder, or just the start of something special.

Either way Mateta is not feeling any pressure. His self-confessed mantra moving forward is simply to "score more and more. Just score."

We asked for your views on Saturday's match between Wolves and Crystal Palace.

Here are some of your answers:

Wolves fans

Tim: We started with lots of possession but no threat in front of goal. The second half was better, but too late, and generally there were too many errors and too many instances of players moaning at each other. I dread to think what will happen at Liverpool next weekend. Roll on next season - this one is ending with a sour taste in the mouth.

David: They look very disjointed and lacking inspiration.

Simon: Awful game - clueless at times. Hwang didn’t touch the ball until 30 minutes into the game. Best player taken off at halftime, all Cuhna wants to do is throw his arms around and complain, the mentality of some players has shifted drastically from earlier in the season and Gary hasn’t been able to address it…was his head turned by speculation of leaving?

Crystal Palace fans

Rich: Not our best performance but goals came from our three superb forwards. Clyne needs praise for another great performance. One last push for our best finish, amazingly after being told to 'be careful what we wish for'. Fingers crossed for keeping our three strikers together for another season and really see what Glasner can achieve next season.

John: This is the Palace that I have been waiting 50 years for. Always the best team in south London but now onwards and upwards. Oliver's army is here to stay!

Mark: Not our best performance recently but they all count. Hughes going off injured affected us.

Gary Lineker introduces highlights and analysis from Saturday's eight Premier League fixtures.

If you missed Match of the Day, you can catch up on the action on BBC iPlayer here.

And you can watch highlights of Sunday's games on Match of the Day 2 here.

Also, listen back to Saturday's BBC Radio 5 Live match commentaries in full on BBC Sounds:

• West Ham United v Luton Town

• Nottingham Forest v Chelsea

Crystal Palace will not let manager Oliver Glasner leave in the summer, despite reports linking the 49-year-old to the head coach role at Bayern Munich. (Fabrizio Romano), external

Want more news? Read Monday's full gossip column

Charlotte Coates
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Crystal Palace won't want the season to end after winning five of their last six games.

Oliver Glasner has completely transformed this Palace side and is giving his attacking players the freedom to go out on the pitch and perform.

It is easy to identify Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze as the two stars in the Eagles' line-up but the contribution of Jean-Philippe Mateta cannot be overlooked.

The Frenchman is in the form of his life and is a handful for any Premier League defender.

His goal in the win over Wolves took his tally to 13 in the Premier League this term - with seven of those coming in his last seven games.

An incredible turnaround in form for the 26-year-old especially since he took 16 games to open his account this term.

Oliver Glasner spoke to BBC Match of the Day after Crystal Palace's victory against Wolves: "It was very tough today, we had a little problem coming into the game. We had the injury to Will Hughes after 10 minutes but we scored two really nice goals in the first half.

"We knew Wolves would try to come back and this is what happened in the second half. We got the third goal. We work very hard as a team. Everyone was here for the team, it was a great effort."

On Ahamada red card: "I have not seen it. It is the decision of the referee and we accept it. We did the best to bring the win home and that's what we did."

On defensive structure: "Everyone talks about our scoring and we create a lot of chances. But we kept the opposite team to less than 10 shots. We have a lot of quality in offence and have runners left and right. The defensive structure was really good today. Everyone wants to score and have good defensive structure. We struggled a bit in set plays but we did everything else well. The win was deserved."

On Olise and Eze: "They have a lot of qualities. They are great players and can score goals. The first goal is Munoz running, giving Olise the chance to run inside and score the goal. The second goal is Clyne makes the sprint in behind. They have the quality but every goal has the guys who create the chances."

• Crystal Palace have won five of their last six Premier League games (D1), indeed since Oliver Glasner’s first game in charge in February, only Man City (9 wins, 29 points) and Arsenal (9 wins, 28 points) have won more games and points in the competition than the Eagles (6 wins, 21 points).

• Crystal Palace's Jean-Philippe Mateta has scored 10 goals in 12 Premier League appearances under Oliver Glasner, just one fewer than he netted in the combined 79 games he played under Roy Hodgson (5) and Patrick Vieira (6) in the competition.

• Wolves have lost six of their last seven Premier League games against Crystal Palace (W1), indeed since their promotion ahead of 2018-19, only against Liverpool (10) and Man City (8) have they lost more matches in the competition than against the Eagles (7).

• Michael Olise has been directly involved in 15 goals (10 goals, five assists) in just 18 Premier League appearances for Crystal Palace this season, already his most goal involvements in a single campaign in the competition, having registered 13 goals (2) and assists (11) combined in 37 games last season.

• Eberechi Eze scored his 24th Premier League goal for Crystal Place in the Premier League, while 33% of those have been assisted by Michael Olise (8).

INSERT MATCH REPORT HERE

Were you at the ground or following along from home?

Wolves fans, give us your thoughts on the game.

Tell us what you made of the performance, Eagles supporters.

Follow all the reaction here

There are eight Premier League games taking place today, and you can stay updated with all of them via our live page.

Keep up with all the action and reaction here.

Chris Sutton is making predictions for every Premier League game this season against a variety of guests.

For this weekend's matches, he takes on Kasabian frontman Serge Pizzorno.

Sutton's prediction: 1-2

Fair play to Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner for what he has done at Palace since taking charge in February.

His initial results were not great and I thought it would be difficult to change the team's brand of football in such a short space of time, but he has changed it and they are getting results.

Having Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise fit has obviously helped the Eagles a lot in an attacking sense, and they are creating lots of chances for Jean-Philippe Mateta.

I can see those three having more joy against a Wolves team who have gone off the boil in recent weeks and are stumbling towards the end of the season.

Serge's prediction: 1-1

Palace are looking pretty strong but Wolves boss Gary O'Neil will not let his side canter through their final home game of the season.

Read all of the predictions here

Oliver Glasner has been speaking to the media before Crystal Palace's trip to Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday (15:00 BST kick-off).

Here are the main lines from his news conference:

• On January signing Adam Wharton: "Adam does really well, otherwise he wouldn't play almost every minute. He starts every game because he always shows great performances - with his passing, with his solutions, with his hard work in central midfield together with Will Hughes. It's very important for us."

• On Wharton pushing for a spot in the England squad: "Gareth Southgate was at Selhurst watching the game against Manchester United so he doesn't need any advice from me. He will nominate the best players for England. We all wish all the best to our players, so of course if he was nominated [for England], it would be a fantastic achievement. He's a young guy so he will have many international appearances, but it's Gareth Southgate's decision."

• On Jairo Riedewald's departure at the end of the season: "It’s nothing to do with his individual quality. He's a great player and a fantastic guy, but we can't sign seven central midfielders if we play with two. Some decisions are not because we don't believe in the quality of the player. We have to see the whole squad, what's necessary and what's important for the team."

• On Saturday's opponents: "Wolves have a lot of quality in offence. They play very aggressively and with high intensity. It will be their last home game. Of course, everybody can read the table. If we win we overtake them - they have their last game at Liverpool and we are at home to Aston Villa. It's no secret."

• Glasner was not completely satisfied with his side's 4-0 victory over Manchester United on Monday: "Of course it was a great win, but why didn't we have so much control in the first half? I think five to four shots for us, and in second half it was 13 to two – so why is there this difference? This is what we showed the players. Out of possession, we opened the middle. We were a little bit sloppy in possession, and then it's not our best performance."

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences

Image source, Getty Images

Crystal Palace trio Will Hughes, Jeffrey Schlupp and Joel Ward have all signed new deals at the club.

All three players have extended their stay Selhurst Park until the summer of 2025, having been described as "core members of the current squad".

"As well as playing a pivotal role on the pitch, Will, Jeff and Joel are natural leaders in the dressing room who embody the Crystal Palace DNA and who help set a culture of the highest standards at the training ground," said chairman Steve Parish.

"We are delighted that they will be with us next season to help further our exciting early progress under Oliver Glasner.

"The club is also in discussions with Nathaniel Clyne and Remi Matthews about extending their stays at the club."

The club also confirmed James Tomkins and Jairo Riedewald will leave when their contracts expire at the end of the season.

Defender Tomkins has been at Palace since 2016, making 135 appearances and scoring 10 goals.

Midfielder Riedewald has featured 95 times for the Eagles, scoring three goals.

Image source, Getty Images

Newcastle United have held advanced talks with Crystal Palace's Dougie Freedman and Johannes Spors, who is the global sporting director at 777 group, about their sporting director role. (Sky Sports), external

Want more news? Read Friday's full gossip column

Image source, Getty Images

Crystal Palace have announced they will travel to the United States for their 2024-25 pre-season tour.

The Eagles will be returning to the country for the second summer in a row to take part in the inaugural Stateside Cup trophy.

They will be playing fixtures against fellow Premier League sides West Ham United and Wolves.

Oliver Glasner's team will take on the Old Gold on 31 July at the 34,000-capacity Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland.

They will then travel to Florida where they will face London rivals West Ham on 3 August at the 69,000-seater Raymond James Stadium.

Chairman Steve Parish said on the announcement: "After such a brilliant tour last year, we are delighted to be returning to the United States once again this summer.

"As a club, we are always hugely appreciative of the support that we receive over in the US, and we hope our growing fanbase will enjoy the chance to join us in Annapolis and Tampa for two exciting matches against Premier League opposition."

Image source, Getty Images

When you are in a situation where some of your biggest players are being talked about for bigger clubs, that is what you want. You are doing something right if you have got a couple of those.

Crystal Place always need a couple of those gems and they could have another one in Adam Wharton who is gathering momentum since his move in January. But Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise have always been the ones with the talent and we are really starting to see the difference now since Oliver Glasner came in and the turnaround in form.

I have been in that situation as a player when you are at a club and some of the big players around you are being looked at by other clubs. I was at Tottenham when we had people wanting to look at Jermain Defoe - that was always a given. I was at Wigan when Antonio Valencia was hot property, and again at Spurs when Manchester United came for Michael Carrick. It is just a normal thing that big clubs come knocking at some times and you cannot stand in their way.

For Olise and Eze, it all depends on how they are thinking about the future, the contracts they have and the clubs that are interested. Do they feel like they can stay a bit longer? With the five to seven-year contracts some of the top clubs are offering these days, it is hard to turn that down and they probably feel they have to roll the dice and go.

From Crystal Palace’s point of view, it is all in their hands. It will depend what offers come in and how much they would be willing to let them go for.

Michael Brown was speaking to BBC Sport's Nicola Pearson

Here are the key facts and figures before Saturday's game between Wolves and Crystal Palace in the Premier League.

• Wolves have lost five of their past six Premier League games against Crystal Palace. However the exception was a 2-0 win in this exact fixture last season.

• Crystal Palace have won 55% of their Premier League games against Wolves (six from 11). Of sides they have played at least 10 times in the competition, only against Stoke (70%) do they have a higher win rate.

• Wolves have conceded 60 Premier League goals this season - their most in a single top-flight campaign since 2011-12 - when they finished bottom (82). Since the start of February they have conceded 29 times in 15 games, with only Sheffield United (46), Luton (40) and West Ham (38) shipping more in that time.

• Crystal Palace have won four of their past five Premier League games, as many as they had in their previous 24 combined. They have scored four or more goals in two of their past four Premier League games, as many times as they had in their previous 82.

• Following goals against Luton and Manchester City in his last two games, Hwang Hee-chan is looking to score in three consecutive Premier League games for the first time. He has 12 goals overall this season - only Raul Jimenez has scored more in a single Premier League campaign for Wolves (13 in 2018-19, 17 in 2019-20).

• Michael Olise has been involved in 12 goals in his past 12 Premier League games - scoring eight and assisting four. Meanwhile, team-mate Jean-Philippe Mateta has scored six goals in his past six league appearances.

Aston Villa are confident they can beat Arsenal and Manchester United to the signing of French winger Michael Olise, 22, from Crystal Palace. (Football Transfers), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Crystal Palace are more open to selling 23-year-old England defender Marc Guehi rather than offloading 22-year-old French winger Michael Olise or 25-year-old England international Eberechi Eze this summer. (Givemesport), external

Want more transfer news? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Alex Howell
BBC Sport football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton put in another excellent display in Monday's 4-0 win over Manchester United.

The 20-year-old has been a key part of the Eagles' five-match unbeaten run and many are calling for the England Under-21 international to be included in Gareth Southgate's squad this summer for the European Championship in Germany.

"I don’t really think about that too much," Wharton said. "The only time it’s on my mind is when I’m getting asked about it.

"It’s obviously great to be mentioned within that. It’s not at the front of my mind. I’m just taking each day as it comes trying to get better. If it happens, it happens. It’d be great, obviously. But at the same time, I’m not expecting anything.

"I’m just enjoying my football at Palace. We’ve still two got two games left before the Euros or the summer and I’m looking at them first. If I get the call-up, wow, fantastic. If not, [I’ll be] recovering somewhere and then get ready to go again.

"When you’re winning a game, it’s always a lot better than when you’re losing or drawing. It just builds the confidence throughout. You can enjoy the game and express yourself a bit more."

Manager Oliver Glasner called the January signing "extraordinary" before the match with United, but Wharton insists he can do more.

"I’m never really satisfied with my performances," Wharton added.

"Even if I have a good game, I always remember the things I could have done better. That’s just how I’ve always looked at games – even coming through the youth groups.

“You’re never perfect and I want to try to be perfect. I’m still only young and have got a lot to work on."

Alex Howell
BBC Sport football news reporter

Crystal Palace are celebrating their first ever league double over Manchester United.

Michael Olise is rightly taking a lot of the praise for the victory after his two goals helped the Eagles to a 4-0 win.

But, there’s also one other player that many are speaking about after the game - Adam Wharton.

The 20-year-old signed for Crystal Palace for an initial £18m with add-ons taking it to £22m on deadline day of this year.

He had a difficult start in his first game for Palace. Introduced as a substitute against rivals Brighton, the ball was taken from him and in that move Brighton took a 3-0 lead.

However, Wharton has gone from strength to strength and started the 13 matches since then - picking up two assists - and has become a key part in Oliver Glasner’s newly implemented 3-4-3 formation.

He made his debut for the England Under-21 side in March after initially being called up to the England Under-20s and now talk has moved on to whether Wharton could be making a late charge for Gareth Southgate’s senior squad for the Euros in Germany.

Wharton was excellent in the win over United and was up against midfielder Kobbie Mainoo, who made his senior Three Lions debut in March and created one of the spaces which allowed Wharton to move up to the U21s.

“He's stepped up so quick and is adapting to Premier League football and the intensity, the speed of the game. His decision-making, his pre-orientation, his solutions with one or two touches is amazing,” Glasner said ahead of the Manchester United match.

"But also we have to stay calm. I always wish the best for my players and the more successful, the more international games, the better it is because everybody wants to play for his home country.

"But also we have to think it was in the March international break he was nominated for the under-20s, then the 21s, so he was then in the second game and he played some minutes, so I don't know if it's the right moment for talking about the [senior squad for the] Euros, but he will have a fantastic career because, again, he's a very good guy and an extraordinary football player."

Southgate was in attendance on Monday night and Wharton has already impressed many inside Selhurst Park while has also caught the eye of other teams within the Premier League.

There are feelings from those inside the club that Wharton could prove to be the best signing the club has made from the Championship, which is huge praise considering the minimum £60m price tags on Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise who were also signed from the league. Both are linked to moves to teams at the top of the Premier League.

The centre midfielder’s eye for a pass is excellent and it’s thought that Wharton’s positive forward passing is allowing both Olise and Eze to excel as they are able to get on the ball quicker and in dangerous areas.

Palace are now five unbeaten with thoughts moving to next season. The Eagles will have interest from clubs for Eze and Olise in the summer but they may have to fend of bids for Wharton sooner than they had hoped.

Alex Pewter
Fan writer

On paper, Monday's game had all the standard ingredients for the TV audience. On one side, a plucky underdog seeking to overthrow one of the game's giants against the odds and backed by their home crowd.

However, this game was the classic role reversal. And it was not just the hubris of the home fans predicting a Crystal Palace victory. This time, they entered as the bookies' favourites.

Seemingly, the mass of match photographers camped down at the Crystal Palace end, awaiting a Manchester United goal, were the only ones not in the loop.

In the build-up to the match, Oliver Glasner dismissed any soundbite questions regarding opposite number Erik ten Hag. He was only willing to speak about his squad.

Yet there is a distinct difference between the two managers. If United have struggled for a clear tactical style or identity over two seasons of Ten Hag, Glasner's is entrenched after only 11 matches.

The system may not be unique, especially in Germany and Austria, but the hard work undertaken on the training ground has placed his players in the best position to succeed.

While we are clearly out of superlatives for the match-winning Michael Olise, it is only fitting that we can shine the spotlight on others, keeping with the mantra of Palace's Austrian coach.

With Gareth Southgate watching, a preview battle of two of England's future midfield hopefuls, Adam Wharton and Kobbie Mainoo, was under way.

Both hail from the north west of England and, though they have different routes to the Premier League, each has a rapidly growing stature in the game in this country.

Anyone fortunate enough to catch glimpses of Wharton at Blackburn Rovers could see the passing, vision and instincts that belied his age and earned him early seniority within that team. However, his move to south Alondon has not curtailed his development.

To Glasner's credit, he appears to demand more from even his brightest prospects. The defensive positioning and physical exertion questioned in Wharton's early appearances, for example, is now a distant memory.

Perhaps that is the most encouraging aspect of Glasner's arrival: his ambition to drive this club and squad to greater heights. It was something markedly absent last summer.

Alex Pewter can be found at FYP podcast, external