Crystal Palace impressed last season as the Patrick Vieira revolution progressed more smoothly than many had anticipated. Vieira has overseen a complete overhaul in approach as Palace moved on from Roy Hodgson’s tepid football to a much more expansive style. Recruitment in SE25 has been excellent too and this has been a huge part of the South London club’s recent success. Palace have combined wonderful additions from the Championship with smart signings at exceptionally good values as Dougie Freedman continues to do an excellent job behind the scenes.
Despite those positives, Palace underperformed last season when translating form into results and resolving this will be a key focus for the upcoming season. That’s not to say that it was a poor season for Palace – the Eagles largely performed excellently and were one of the better teams to watch – but there were plenty of games where Palace deserved more than they got. Suffering similarly to arch-rivals Brighton when it comes to xG underperformance, Palace’s failings were more about keeping the ball out of the net rather than converting their own chances. Their 1-1 draw with Albion early in the season is a perfect example. Palace dominated the match but conceded one chance in the 98th minute and ended up coming away with just one point.
Vieira’s side drew 15 games last season, the joint-most in the league alongside Brighton. If they can squeeze a few extra wins out of those matches then they could make a push for a top-half finish, something they haven’t achieved since 2015.
Signing of the Summer – Cheick Doucouré
22 year-old Cheick Doucouré is one of the most exciting new additions to the Premier League this summer. The Malian midfielder sparkled as part of Franck Haise’s overachieving RC Lens side as they managed back-to-back seventh place finishes in Ligue 1. Sitting alongside the imperious presence of Seko Fofana in the Lens midfield, Doucouré put up incredible numbers combining constant ball recoveries with exceptional progression stats. He’s perfect for Palace, who have lacked a quality number six to replace Luka Milivojević as the Serb’s influence has waned in recent seasons.
Cheikhou Kouyaté was used regularly in this position last season but the Senegalese doesn’t have the requisite passing ability to complement his destructive qualities out of possession. Doucouré’s inclusion at the base of Vieira’s midfield will significantly improve the platform Palace are able to give to creative players like Ebere Eze and Michael Olise with the Malian providing both defensive security and quality in build-up.
Key Player – Wilfried Zaha
Picking Palace’s key player has been much the same for most of the last ten years with Wilfried Zaha at the centre of almost everything that has gone right in South London. A club legend to the Selhurst Park faithful, Zaha combines a dogged kind of determination you can only get from a local boy with genuine star quality. He’s a diamond, the kind that rarely comes along, and he will be central to Vieira’s plans for the coming season.
Starting on the left flank and drifting inside to devastating effect, Zaha will look to dovetail with Jean-Philippe Mateta as the big Frenchman draws the attention of opposition centre-backs while Zaha exploits the spaces left behind. His dribbling and ball-carrying abilities make him an excellent early option in possession as opposition full-backs know that committing to a challenge only has one outcome. No one was fouled more regularly in the league last season than Zaha and his 4.04 fouls drawn per 90 constantly create set-piece opportunities for his teammates.
If Olise and Eze can stay injury free this season, Palace will have a genuinely frightening attacking midfield trio. It will be fascinating to see what Zaha can do with such quality around him.
FPL Asset – Michael Olise
He may not be available at the very beginning of the season but, at just £5.5m, Michael Olise could be an excellent option for your fantasy team when he recovers his fitness. One of the most relentless chance creators in the league last season, Olise complements Zaha’s directness on the left with his fantastic eye for a pass. Only seven players generated more xA per 90 than Olise (0.27) last season and all seven of those are employed by top six clubs (Kevin De Bruyne, Christian Eriksen, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah, Jack Grealish, Reece James and Phil Foden). The Frenchman is one of the better assets available at a cheaper price-point in midfield and although Zaha is clearly the best Crystal Palace option overall, Olise provides a route into Palace’s attack for significantly less outlay.
With the Eagles having a particularly challenging run of fixtures to start the season, most FPL managers haven’t paid much attention to their players, and Olise has largely been ignored given his lack of preseason. But come Gameweek 10, Palace’s fixtures turn completely and Vieira’s side have a run of games against Leeds, Leicester, Wolves, Everton, Southampton, West Ham, Nottingham Forest, Fulham and Bournemouth in consecutive weeks. By this time, Olise will be back fit and a key part of Palace’s attack. This would be a great time to switch your budget midfielder, probably Pedro Neto or Leon Bailey, over to Olise.
Expected Eleven
Palace will almost certainly line-up in a 433 shape again this season and Vieira will be hoping that Doucouré’s quality will help assuage the impact of the loss of Chelsea loanee Conor Gallagher. Last season, Gallagher’s relentless energy in midfield allowed Palace to press high and force turnovers with the Englishman recording 24.77 pressures per 90 – enough to place him in the top 10% of pressing midfielders in the Premier League. Gallagher also provided a crucial source of goals from midfield for Vieira’s team, scoring eight in total, and it’ll be fascinating to see how Palace go about reshaping themselves in his absence. Jeffrey Schlupp will aim to recreate his goal threat but we’ll have to wait and see whether the Ghanain can produce the same kind of energy out of possession.
There are a few close calls over starting spots in the Palace team. Jean-Philippe Mateta has improved immeasurably over the course of the last year but Odsonne Edouard impressed in preseason with two goals and two assists and will hope to force his way into the team after an underwhelming first season in Palace colours. James McArthur will also be hoping to lock down a spot alongside Doucouré in midfield once he has recovered from a groin injury, and the first choice pick at right-back is somewhat of a toss-up between Nathaniel Clyne and Joel Ward.
Personnel choices aside, the target for Palace this season is clear: Another stable season in mid-table, with no threat of relegation, and maybe a run in one of the cups. Given that the squad is arguably the strongest it’s been since 2015, that should be eminently achievable.
