Crystal Palace

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against a variety of guests.

This week, he takes on musician Emma-Jean Thackray, who is a Leeds fan.

Sutton's prediction: 1-0

Crystal Palace are definitely showing more mettle at the moment, and they were very well organised in their 0-0 draw at Bournemouth.

To be fair to Southampton, the same can already be said for them under new manager Ivan Juric. I know they lost to West Ham in his first game in charge, but they could have got something out of it.

Saints seem to have changed their style - from purists to pumping it - but there is nothing wrong with being direct, and they showed their resilient side when they got a draw at Fulham before Christmas, when Juric was watching from the stands.

I am expecting another close game here, but Palace will probably edge it.

Emma-Jean's prediction: 3-0

Palace look a lot more improved recently and they are my local team now I live in London. So I do have a bit of a soft spot for them, plus Southampton fans were not very nice about them getting promoted ahead of us last season. The bitter person in me wants us to go up and wave as we pass them on their way down.

Read the full predictions and have your say here

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Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner says he wants to see Tyrick Mitchell develop his abilities on the ball.

Thursday's draw against Bournemouth saw Mitchell make his 150th Premier League appearance. The 25 year-old is the youngest player to reach this milestrone for the Eagles, and the 11th in total.

"The biggest potential he has is in possession," said Glasner. "Entering the final third, I think he can be involved more and have quicker solutions. This is what we are working on daily with him.

"He is very consistent, he is always available and plays to a high level."

Fellow wing-back Daniel Munoz has caught the eye with his attacking threat since signing last January and Glasner was asked about how Mitchell compares with the Colombia defender.

"We have to accept that he will never be a Daniel Munoz," Glasner conceded. "Danny has a natural skill - an attacking way. He [Mitchell] comes more from the defensive part. I think he has improved already, but he still has potential within this.

"If you have [both] attacking wing-backs, you need more defensive sixes. When you have one defensive wing-back, you can have a more attacking six. Our sixes are more defensive so we can encourage [Mitchell] to be a bit more attacking and create more situations.

"He is trying to improve and there is still a long season to go."

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We asked for your thoughts after Thursday's Premier League game between Bournemouth and Crystal Palace.

Here are some of your comments:

Bournemouth fans

Jonathan: Again, not making the better play in the game count will prove costly through the season. We were the better team, but failed to really make anything in the final third. We need to be more ruthless. Fair play to Palace, they defended well, but they will definitely be the happier of the two sides after that game.

Ben: I love our brand of football and our attacking intent, but we need to start converting our chances. I guess Santa didn't deliver goalscoring boots this Christmas! That being said, Kepa Arrizabalaga and the back line did a stunning job nullifying Palace.

Clive: Injuries are starting to take a toll. The suspension of Justin Kluivert for the next game will mean he will be fresh to play against Everton. We are lacking pace off the bench until the injured players return. Andoni Iraola has limited resources, but prefers to use a limited number of players. I cannot see us recalling those on loan, but we might need an additional pacey winger to bring and maintain competition.

John: Another good display from the team - we just need to get better at finishing. Also, I don't think it was a good choice of striker from the start.

Palace fans

Dave: Good away point. We were lucky though. On another day, it could have been 4-0 with the amount of chances Bournemouth missed.

Lee: Good point away from home but it shows where we've got to strengthen in the window. At least three players short. Need a striker, a number 10 and a left wing-back.

Robert: Palace lost their composure and couldn't settle on the ball. The passes were hurried and inaccurate and they lost most of the 50-50 tackles. All credit to Bournemouth for being more persistent and energetic. Eberechi Eze, in his current form, is a luxury Palace can't afford and Daichi Kamada is a bargain they should not have made.

Don: Ironic that Palace fans are keeping their faith in Oliver Glasner. A good point but one achieved through a solid defence while trying to play on the break - rather like the style Roy Hodgson was criticised for at the end.

Highlights and analysis from Boxing Day's eight Premier League fixtures.

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

Crystal Palace's 21-year-old English full-back Danny Imray is wanted by several Championship and League One promotion-chasers looking to sign him on loan for the second half of the campaign. (Telegraph - subscription required), external

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

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Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner, speaking to Amazon Prime: "It's okay it is a point. I think the game was like we expected, a lot of duels and very intense. They are doing well and on a run so it is fine.

"We knew that set plays especially in the first half we struggled twice but in the end we did well in defending. They had several shots but we didn't need a big save from our goalkeeper. We had three or four opportunities to score, overall I think it's okay.

On their momentum with one defeat in seven league games: "Every Premier League game is tough, especially away games. It's important you are stable in defending and waiting for situations. Of course there are things to improve but overall it's going in the right direction."

On the team's character: "You could see today that they played very direct, in behind, had a lot of pace almost from every position. It makes it difficult to play against them. Sometimes you move the ball very quickly and then we could switch the sides and create situations. It was a good performance and a very important point."

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It was not exactly the most enthralling of performances from Crystal Palace in their draw with Bournemouth on Boxing Day, but it was an important return to form nevertheless.

They bounced back from successive league and cup defeats by Arsenal last week to hold a Cherries side who are pushing to secure a spot in Europe next season and claimed an impressive win against Manchester United last weekend.

Palace reduced them to just four shots on target - albeit allowing them to have 18 shots in total - and coped well under the constant pressure from the hosts.

They kept a clean sheet as they avoided defeat and have now lost just one of their past seven Premier League games, a record which shows there have been ample positives as of late.

Attention will now turn to Sunday's game against Southampton, a fixture against the league's bottom-placed side which is a much better chance to get back to winning ways.

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Crystal Palace have lost just one of their last seven Premier League games (W2 D4) after losing four of the six directly before that.

Were you at the game or following from elsewhere?

Have your say on Bournemouth's performance

What did you make of Crystal Palace's display?

Come back to this page on Friday to find a selection of your replies

There are eight matches in the Premier League on Thursday, and we will bring you every moment.

• Manchester City v Everton (12:30)

• Bournemouth v Crystal Palace

• Chelsea v Fulham

• Newcastle v Aston Villa

• Nottingham Forest v Tottenham

• Southampton v West Ham

• Wolves v Manchester United (17:30)

• Liverpool v Leicester (20:00)

Kick-off time 15:00 GMT unless stated

Follow all the action and reaction here

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against a variety of guests.

This week, he takes on Eats Everything, aka DJ and producer Daniel Pearce.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

I am not going to overthink this one.

Until they lost to Arsenal twice last week, Crystal Palace were showing signs of improvement, but Bournemouth have been brilliant.

Andoni Iraola's side thoroughly deserved to beat Manchester United on Sunday. They always create loads of chances and, at the moment, they are taking them.

Eats Everything's prediction: 2-1

Bournemouth are absolutely on fire - as United found out on Sunday, unfortunately. I love Antoine Semenyo, who is an ex-Bristol City player and is absolute dynamite, but the whole team just look really solid and play amazing football.

Palace have started to kick on a bit now too, and Oliver Glasner is doing a good job there, but I'm definitely going with Bournemouth here.

Read the full predictions and have your say

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For me, wherever I played, I'd always see where the first game was, where the last game was, and where we were at Christmas.

There is such a big difference between being at home on Boxing Day versus being away because, depending on what your manager is like, if you've got an away game there is a chance you're training on Christmas Day.

Some of the toughest times I had was when we had away games on Boxing Day and we had to come in to train at four or five on Christmas. That's when everything is just starting at home and everyone is really enjoying themselves and you have to leave.

If you lose you are sat in the hotel having walked away from friends and family all for no points. It's not the best feeling and as a consequence you bring home some of that disappointment with you.

But, in reality, you just know it is the busiest time of the year. The floodlights are always on for the games, the conditions get that little bit tougher, you've got games it feels like every three or four days.

I think it's an exciting part of the season because you can gain real, significant momentum but ultimately it comes down to are you winning games.

I think the Christmas period itself can be tough if you have got family but in reality it always feels nicer when you get that win on Boxing Day. The atmosphere in the stadiums is a little bit different, the atmosphere among the players is a bit different.

You're very thankful to get the chance to do what you do, but if you end up losing on Boxing Day or around that spell it is rubbish because it almost feels like it was a waste of time with all the efforts you put in.

But, I get it. The fans love it, there is a lot of clamour around it. You lose track of days just like everyone else does after Christmas and before New Year but it is great to play in front of those types of crowds and it just does feel different playing during that week or two.

Nedum Onuoha was speaking to BBC Sport's Nat Hayward

Alex Pewter
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

If there has been any significant change in 2024, it has been the arrival of Oliver Glasner and his coaching staff.

Like many other clubs, Crystal Palace have the habit of drifting from one existential crisis to another - real or imagined. Yet, while Glasner opened his account with a routine 3-0 victory over a soon-to-be relegated Burnley, it took seven weeks and a mid-season training camp for his true impact to be felt.

This brings us to Anfield, the classic underdogs against a daunting Jurgen Klopp and his team, then only three points off the top of the league table.

Into the 13th minute, starting with a throw-in on the right-hand side in the Liverpool half, Glasner's team unfurled a 17-pass move that shifted the ball from right to left, back via defence, and a combination of one-touch passes back down the left flank.

Eventually, the team released Tyrick Mitchell into the area, who cut it back, giving Eberechi Eze a casual goal to score from the edge of the six-yard box. About 40 seconds of pure footballing brilliance.

The Liverpool team were mere spectators for the entire process, and the 1-0 result at full-time was seismic for both title challengers and Palace's new manager.

This moment and result started a run of six wins and a draw to end the 2023-24 season. In many ways, this is the level of performance the team has been seeking ever since, hampered by a questionable summer of recruitment and injury issues.

For Glasner, it clearly established him as a Premier League-worthy manager in the minds of any lingering doubters left frustrated by previous results.

Even now, that hope remains that if you get the right pieces in place, this team could reach the heights the fans desire.

Find more from Alex Pewter at FYP podcast, external

Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner has been speaking to the media before Thursday's Premier League game against Bournemouth (kick-off 15:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Glasner says Eberechi Eze will likely be available for Thursday's match: "It looks like it, he trained today and now we have to wait, but it looks good."

• He also confirmed that everyone who was available against Arsenal will also be available against Bournemouth.

• On opponents Bournemouth: "They've had a fantastic job from their manager [Andoni Iraola] and I also think the players, alongside Tottenham, they play at the highest intensity. They have so much pace in their attack."

• He was asked what the Christmas schedule looks like for his players: "Of course we have to try focus on the games. We'll train tomorrow morning, a bit earlier than usual, and then the players can go home again and celebrate with their families."

Follow all of Thursday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

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Jean-Philippe Mateta has comitted his future to Crystal Palace.

You can read more about his contract extension from Alex Howell here