Bournemouth vs Crystal Palace Prediction & Betting Tips (26 December)

Bournemouth are one of the big surprises of the first part of the season at the top of the table. 6th in the Premier League, the Cherries even had their most successful period of the year before heading to Manchester United on Sunday. They remained on 3 victories against Wolverhampton 2-4, Tottenham 1-0 and Ipswich 1-2, as well as a draw at home against West Ham 1-1. Playing in Europe for the moment is idyllic for a team used to having the supporting roles in England.  Author of a very bad start to the season, Crystal Palace is still paying the price.

The Eagles are only 15th in the standings, 4 points from the red zone, although they have achieved rather consistent results over the current period. Palace remained on 5 matches without defeat in the league (2 wins, 3 draws) before facing Arsenal twice. The first ended in a 3-2 defeat in the quarter-finals of the English League Cup last week and the second saw Oliver Glasner's team host the Gunners on Saturday in the Premier League. 

The current absentees should not change for Bournemouth. The defenders Araujo and Senesi remain out of use, a priori like the replacement midfielder Scott and the senior wingers Tavernier (1 goal and 4 assists in the league) and Sinisterra (1 goal). Turkey's Ünal scored his first goals of the season recently. He remains behind Evanilson, Semenyo (4 goals each) or even Kluivert (5 goals) on a statistical level.

On the Crystal Palace side, defender Rias absent for several months, right-back replacing Ward and midfielders França (no match ) and Wharton, who has been a forfeit for several weeks, should still forfeit. Among the dangerous players in the offensive sector, we find the Frenchman Mateta, author of his 7th goal of the season in all competitions in the Coupe de la Ligue. Former Marseillais Sarr (3 TCC goals) is also a serious asset.