Crystal Palace vs Leeds news: Marsch's men in need of extra breathing room in relegation scrap

Michael Graham
25 April 2022

Leeds head to London on Monday evening knowing they cannot afford to take their Premier League survival for granted.

Leeds head to Selhurst Park for the Monday night game keen to respond to growing pressure below the min the relegation scrap.

Despite Burnley's win over Wolves on the weekend, Leeds remain four points clear of the relegation zone thanks to Everton's Merseyside derby loss, and a victory on Monday night would open up a substantial gap on their rivals.

What's more, with Crystal Palace only on 37 points this season, a Leeds win would see the Yorkshire side rise to just one point behind them.

With both teams desperate to make a statement of intent about their Premier League status on Monday evening, it's bound to be an exciting clash in the capital.

When: Monday, April 25, 20:00 GMT

Where: Selhurst Park

Where to watch: Sky Sports

Follow the game live in our score centre

Who is the ref for Crystal Palace vs Leeds

Darren England will take charge of this one, with Constantine Hatzidakis and James Mainwaring assisting him. Graham Scott will assume VAR duties.

England is no stranger to Leeds and Crystal Palace, having already officiated them both twice this season.

Neither side have won under his watch yet though, with him presiding over two draws for Leeds and a draw and a defeat for Palace.

One stand-out stat from England is that he likes to award a penalty. This will be his 14th match of the season and he has already given eight spot kicks - including one against each of these sides. In fact, no Premier League referee has awarded more penalties this season.

Season stats 2021/22: Premier League matches (13), yellows (53), reds (1), penalties (8)

Recent form

Leeds looked like they were in real trouble a few weeks ago, but a stunning run of three wins and a draw from their last four games has put a whole new context on their season.

The worry for Leeds will be that by the time they kick off at Selhurst Park, it will be more than two weeks since their last game at Watford - a 3-0 win - and that positive momentum may have dissipated.

Crytal Palace are on a run of three successive defeats in all competitions, but they will take solace from the fact all of those have come away from Selhurst Park.

Their last three patches on home turf have yielded a goalless draw with Man City and big wins over Everton (FA Cup) and Arsenal, so they will be expecting a much better performance on Monday.

Last three matches

Leeds 1-0 Crystal Palace (November 30, 2021)

It was a nervy one when these two sides met earlier in this season, and one full of late drama.

The game appeared to be heading for a goalless draw, but VAR intervened in injury time to award the hosts a penalty for handball.

Raphinha kept his nerve to convert and claim a valuable three points for Leeds.

Leeds 2-0 Crystal Palace (February 8, 2021)

Leeds got the better of Palace at Elland Road again last season, and it was much more comfortable for the Yorkshire side.

An early Jack Harrison goal settled the nerves before Patrick Bamford doubled the lead in the second half.

Palace were in the midst of an injury crisis, though, and were only able to name six out of a possible nine substitutes.

Crystal Palace 4-1 Leeds (November 7, 2020)

It was Crystal Palace who were on top in the corresponding fixture last season, dominating the game from start to finish.

Scott Dann opened the scoring early and Ebere Eze quickly doubled the lead. Patrick Bamford briefly gave Leeds some hope, but a Helder Costa own goal saw Palace hold a commanding lead at half-time.

Jordan Ayew gave the scoreline some extra gloss after the break.

Premier League head-to-head

Crystal Palace wins: 3

Draws: 1

Leeds wins: 5

Crystal Palace scored: 9

Leeds scored: 11

Managers' thoughts

There is some extra motivation in this clash due to some previous matches between the two coaches when both were competing in the MLS.

Jesse Marsch was the manager of New York red Bull while Patrick Vieira was in charge of New York City, with the Frenchman once confronting his opposite number on the pitch afterwards telling him to "stop crying" after a defeat.

Both have sought to downplay that, though, with Marsch saying: "When [Viera] first made the decision to come to MLS we were all excited to have his stature in the league.

"I had to hate him in NYC. [He's] not an easy guy to hate. From expertise and work perspective he's very good coach. Had differing styles and ways of thinking about the game. [It] made for interesting matches. Heated moments, but over time we had great respect for each other."

Viera, meanwhile, added of Marsch: "I didn't have any doubt about his quality as a manager.

"He was different in the MLS. He went to the Red Bull family, and now in the Premier League, he has a little bit of credit. He's worked hard to get where he is.

"You always have this pressure on you when you come into the Premier League, and it's about proving people wrong. That pressure was on me, and this is what we have to live with.

"He believes in himself and knows how good he is. It's about us getting the best from our players."

Predicted Crystal Palace vs Leeds teams

Possible Leeds starting line-up: Meslier, Ayling, Llorente, Cooper, Dallas, Koch, Klich, Raphinha, Rodrigo, Harrison, James

Possible Crystal Palace starting line-up: Guaita, Clyne, Andersen, Guehi, Mitchell, Gallagher, Kouyate, Schlupp, Ayew, Edouard, Zaha

Crystal Palace vs Leeds prediction

Leeds need a win here a lot more than Crystal Palace do, but Palace have been a force at Selhurst Park recently and that will probably give them the edge here. 1-0 home win.