Palace will pose plenty of problems for the Cherries

Crystal Palace are only two points above the relegation zone and will come to Dean Court with plenty of fire power to try and extend that gap. Roy Hodgson will have his team well-motivated for this game having dropped points against Liverpool in their last game and they can't afford to drop any more points at this stage

AFCB at Selhurst Park earlier in the season.

Wilfred Zaha is the main danger man for Palace and although he has not scored in the three games since his return, he has been involved in winning a penalty against Liverpool and his speed and fast play should send warning lights up whenever he is on the ball. Another player that looks in form for Palace is Patrick van Arnaanholt who is a powerful player who was great in recent games against Chelsea and Man Utd. Bournemouth also know that Milivojevic is excellent from the penalty spot. The worry for Hodgson is that Christian Benteke has been stinking the place out and now he's got a groin strain and will probably miss the game. Having no big striker is not great for Palace when every goal and point is so important at the moment.

Still, Palace have to come and attack and that could dictate how Eddie Howe goes about this game. He could allow Palace to have the ball if they start to flood players forward to get a goal, hoping that the speed of Wilson, Ibe and King can catch Palace on the break. It is not how Bournemouth set about games in the early minutes, but it could become the tactic if the scores are still level going into the second half.

Advertisement

Broom Hill Garden Buildings

This game will be all about management and formations I feel, as the tactical battle should be fascinating. Bournemouth's problem is that while they have the capability of scoring they are not keeping clean sheets and some way of making the defence less exposed is a problem Howe will have to look at this week. With Andros Townsend and Wilfred Zaha on the wings for Palace, Howe has to make these players do more defending than they want to and that could mean that Fraser and Ibe become Bournemouth's most important players as they'll have to win their battles to push Palace back.

Cherry Chimes T-Shirt competition
If you want to try and win a T-Shirt, Tweet the correct score for AFCB v Crystal Palace before 9am on Saturday. We will pick a winner from the correct entries if there is more than one correct prediction. Tweet your score prediction to @CherryChimes

Match Preview - Questions and Answers with the Eagles Beak 

RedNBlue Army podcast - Cherry Chimes talks about AFCB's season and replies to dirty Bournemouth suggestion!

Begovic could be the difference this season for AFCB staying up

Asmir already has John Wiliams' vote of being the best AFCB player in the first half of the season. I might not agree with the BBC Radio Solent presenter but Asmir is one of the players that has been on top of his game and he may yet be the difference that keeps Bournemouth up for a fourth successive season in the Premier League.

Begovic's form is crucial in saving points for AFCB. 

We all wan keepers to do the impossible of course. Save the shots and make no mistakes. yet, on the last line of defence you only have to make a mistake to see a goal go in and any mistake in the keeper's position is always costly. We saw that in the West Ham match, but Asmir more than made up for that with his saves from Izquierdo.

We might not like Asmir to be involved as much as he is in games, but at the moment AFCB have been indebted to Begovic for saving the day. Looking at the other teams in the bottom six, Begovic stacks up pretty well against most of them. Jack Butland has aspirations of making the World Cup but he may find that hard in a Stoke team where they have almost conceded 50 goals, while Joe Hart has already lost his place at West Ham.

Advertisement

Broomhill Garden Conservatories

Begovic has also been able to save a penalty from Christan Benteke to earn Bournemouth a valuable point against a fellow bottom side. He seems to be able to make big saves against those clubs that are in and around where AFCB are in the table and if he can keep doing that then it will be a massive help to Bournemouth's final league position.

PremierTalk - Swansea and WBA are cut slightly adrift

AskFans' report on Brighton 2 v 2 AFCB

Begovic will thrive on penalty save

Much has been made of the penalty decisions that Kevin Friend gave at Selhurst Park but there was one man who was going to be involved for both penalty kicks in Bournemouth's goal. Asmir Begovic was having a busy day. He was not going to be in a calm frame of mind for the first penalty, having been carded and annoyed with the decision, but he certainly was focussed for the Benteke penalty.

Asmir is likely to have a busy December, but he couldn't be in better form.

Benteke was eager to get himself on the score sheet and he was on a hiding to nothing to take the penalty in the first place. Had he scored nothing would have been said about his decision to take the kick, but Palace fans should be aware, he did not miss, he had his shot saved. Some times you can take a penalty with out enormous conviction and get a goal, but you have to be confident and wrong foot the keeper. Begovic was staring the ball down and was confident he could get near to Benteke's kick, and yet he will have been nervous having already not been able to save one penalty.

Advertisement

Broom Hill Garden Buildings

It was a heroic moment for Begovic. When he looks back on what he has done he will feel that he got his team out of a hole, and no doubt Eddie Howe and his team-mates are most grateful to him. Daniels will be the most relieved player, but such incidents just bring the team together and get them focussed on how important every point is.

Bournemouth are now unbeaten in their last four away games having last been beaten away at Wembley. There is a greater determination about the team currently not to lose games and that is going to be vital going into these next few big games. Begovic will be needed more than usual we might expect, but his form is at a leave that is right up their and he can feel confident that he is going to make saves against some of the biggest teams in the division and possible earn AFCB some more points at a crucial time of the season.

A point at Palace is hard when every tackle is a penalty!

Match Report

Crystal Palace 2 v 2 AFCB

9 December 2017

Attendance: 24,823

AFCB take on Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

What a strange game this was. Bournemouth were well in control when a swiftly taken corner move from the training ground led to a clear shot for Jermain Defoe to open the scoring, and even when Wilfried Zaha was running at Bournemouth's defence Palace did not look like scoring. Unfortunately. Begovic wanted to make sure and Zaha won the penalty to get Palace in the game, while a second Palace goal from Scott Dann, who else - he always scores against AFCB - should have given Palace a half time lead, but Defoe's remarkable lofted chip made it 2-2 at the break. Bournemouth looked to have secured a point in injury time, but Zaha was up to his old tricks and Daniels almost lost the game with a last ditch tackle on him. Justice was done though when a greedy Benteke took the spot kick and Begovic saved it t leave the score 2-2.  

The Christmas spirit was going well at Selhurst Park
until the penalties started to get awarded.

Bournemouth only made one change with Steve Cook replacing the suspended Adam Smith, while Harry Artur made it back on the bench. 

Crystal Palace made three changes with Ward, Kelly ad McCarthy dropping out of the starting line up and Fosu-Mensah, Cabaye and Tomkins coming into the team.

There are more pictures on Match Day Gallery.

Bournemouth and Crystal Palace go all out for a win. 

Bournemouth were under pressure from the start with Jeffrey Schlupp firing over from distance. Benteke then had a chance at the near post but headed wide. 

Defoe did his best to get a header just wide of the target from a right wing cross, but after some good work from King to win a corner Defoe would get another chance. This time Surman took it short to Stanislas who played it back for Surman to pick out a centrally -laced Defoe who slotted past Seproni from about 12 yards to make it one-nil on 10 minutes. Josh King had illegally held Schlupp back from making a challenge but the referee had not seen and nor had I at the time.

Palace were undeterred with Benteke forcing a save from Begovic off his knew, before Aké made a strong block from Townsend. From the Palace corner Sakho missed almost a sitter on the line with Surman in attendance, but Bournemouth scrambled the ball away. 

King was working hard and almost got to Sakho at the back. Cabaye then made a great tackle on Defoe to deny him a striking chance when he was almost through. Sakho had played Defoe onside, because he was injured and had to be replaced by Scott Dann on 25 minutes. 

Advertisement

Broomhill Garden Conservatories

Tomkins then fouled King and picked up a yellow card. Tomkins later had a shot from distance that went wide, even if the offside should have gone up earlier. Milivojevic then went in the book for chopping Fraser down. Stanislas almost broke through but Speroni came out quickly to deny a chance. Stanislas did get a shot off a moment later but it was deflected right at the keeper. 

The game to a big turn when a long ball was headed on by Benteke to Zaha to chase. While Akee looked to have got across, Begovic came out to make sure and Zaha went down. A penalty was awarded and Milivojevic stuck it away. Zaha left his leg trailing and looked like he was already going down before Begovic made contact.

It was only three minutes later when the game changed completely and a Palace corner  was kept alive by Benteke and then Cabaye who put a low cross in from the right and Scott Dann popped up at the far post to make it 2-1.

Bournemouth were rocked but as half time approached Lewis Cook put a speculative ball forward from half way towards Defoe who not only get their first, ahead of Scott Dann, but with one bounce looped his shot over Speroni and in to the top left corner to make it 2-2. It was an absolute beauty!

Half time dancing at Palace.

Second half
Bournemouth came out early and they soon had Palace on the back foot with Surman hitting a shot at Speroni. But Begovic soon also had to make a save from Rubens Loftus-Cheek.

Stanislas was starting to see more of the ball and had a shot deflected. He then found Defoe who shot wide just in front of Dann. Bournemouth were not getting the decisions at this point.

Howe changed things to bring Ibe on for Stanislas on 65 minute and Palace too Cabaye off and brought McArthur on. Ibe did his usual in running into trouble straight away, but a few moments later he had his head down and drilled a fierce shot that Speroni could only push away.

Lewis Cook then clipped Zaha and the Palace forward lost his cool and went for Lewis Cook. It was a yellow for Zaha.

Palace were getting closer when Benteke headed a free kick on to Scott Dann who shot over from six yards. Townsend was then subbed for Sakho to come on with 12 minutes to go. Ibe was fouled by McArthur who got booked before Callum Wilson replaced Defoe with 10 minutes left.

Benteke was then booked for a foul on Lewis Cook. Palace were still mounting a challenge and Loftus-Cheek has a low shot saved by Begovic at his left post. Ibe made a terrible mistake playing the ball back towards the D when he could have cleared, but Milivojevic finally put the chance wide.

Afobe replaced King for the last three minutes. The passing became more erratic and with five minutes of added time it was Bournemouth that were hanging on. A long ball up to Zaha had Steve Cook back peddling and while he blocked a first shot from the number 11, Daniels came in with a stronger challenge to put the ball out for what looked like a corner, but Kevin Friend pointed to the spot. I couldn't believe it and nor could the Bournemouth players as Daniels looked to have made a clean attempt to get the ball. Yet, on Match of the Day's replay we did see that Daniels had touched Zaha's foot first.

Benteke was not the appointed penalty taker but he stepped up anyway having not scored all season. So it was something he'll have to explain when he saw his spot kick saved by Begovic, low to his right.


Bournemouth were not finished. They even had a shout for a penalty themselves after Wilson tried to get a shot off in the box and Schlupp had his hands up that blocked the shot.

Match line up for AFCB.

Summary
Palace possibly deserved one penalty, but two was a rather fortunate for them. Bournemouth's players were adamant that neither should have been a penalty kick, but you are not going to win every decision when you make last ditch challenges in the box. Zaha knows to go down when he feels the challenge and he was impressive in playing the victim. But Bournemouth's defenders know he would do that, and getting into those situations in the first place is the thing that should concern Howe. Still, Bournemouth showed some good moments and Defoe finally showed us how he is a goalscorer that only needs a slight chance to get his goals. While three points would have been handy from this game, it is a good point against an improving Palace side.

AFCB escape with a draw.

Bournemouth players surround the referee after the match.

AFCB Ratings
Begovic 8, Francis 5, S Cook 6, Aké 6, Daniels 6, Fraser 6, L Cook 7, Surman 7, Stanislas 6, King 7, Defoe 9

Crystal Palace
Speroni, Fosu-Mensah, Tomkins, Sakho (Dann), Schlupp, Townsend (Sako), Cabaye (McArthur), Milivojevic (Loftus-Cheek), Zaha, Benteke

Palace Subs

Hennessey, van Aanholt, Dann, McArthur, Sako, Kelly, Puncheon

Referee Watch: Kevin Friend 2/10 - Far too many free kicks and penalties awarded. It was a well contested game but seven yellow cards was excessive and players were winning free kicks for just hitting the ground - unfortunately, Zaha did most of his falling over in AFCB's penalty box.

Rival Lines: Hodgson - "the right man at the right time," says The Eagles Beak

Rival Lines
Match Preview: Crystal Palace v AFCB
Blogger Interview: The Eagles Beak
Twitter: @Theeaglesbeak

Talking to a Crystal Palace fan is a little easier than it might have been a few weeks ago. They are starting to believe that they are not the worst team in the Premier league and with players coming back and Roy Hodgson getting a tune out of what was a disjointed side. Sam at the Eagles Beak is quietly confident of things turning around.

CC: Did you think that Frank de Boer's ill-fated period in charge says more about the board at Palace, who took a risk with an untried foreign manager in the Premier League and yet didn't have the courage to stick with their convictions?

TEB: There were many more factors to de Boer’s dismissal than were obvious to the naked eye. The results were an obvious stumbling point; they were not good enough but the performances were gradually improving and we were not as bad as many suggested. The players also had a problem with de Boer behind the scenes: apparently he showed off in training and senior members of the squad disliked his approach. While this seems extremely petty on the squadms behalf, if you’re in a predicament such as we were and the relationship between coaches and players ceases to exist, he needs to go.

The board clearly made a mistake in appointing de Boer. They were providing a squad far more familiar to Tony Pulis, Sam Allardyce and Alan Pardew with a very progressive perfectionist whose own mistake was his insistence on an immediate revolution rather than making gradual tweaks. The general consensus is that his time was up.

CC: Were you pleased when Roy Hodgson was made Crystal Palace manager or do you think there were better options out there?

TEB: Hodgson’s appointment was as underwhelming as Allardyce’s and that turned out perfectly. Perhaps from a neutral’s perspective it seems like a risk but the former England manager has gone about his work well, going back to basics and getting the best out of a squad that was previously underperforming. The ‘look how far we’ve come’ narrative is overplayed by Palace fans but Hodgson - being a Palace fan as a kid - ‘gets’ the journey this club has been on and that has come across in his press conferences. He speaks well about the club which bodes well with Palace fans and has made the transition from ‘underwhelming appointment’ to ‘we have the right man at the right time’ far easier.

CC: November was a half decent month for Palace, but do you feel the team is functioning much better now?

TEB: Palace are picking up points where we would not have done under de Boer, such as the victories against Chelsea and Stoke City. There has been frustration that other points have not been picked up under Hodgson, such as the two 2-2 draws against West Ham and Everton in which the side dominated each game and all four goals were very avoidable. It’s a reflection on how poor the rest of the bottom four or five are that we have managed to catch up so quickly, though.

CC: You've scored two goals at home in each of the last two matches at Selhurst Park, so do you feel you have the goal power to get out of trouble?

TEB: This is the only worry with Palace. We relied on Christian Benteke’s goals last season and cannot rely on current top scorer, Wilfried Zaha, who is just going through a period of good form in front of goal. Everton, West Ham and Brighton could easily have been out of sight had good chances been scored and our goal difference could be the difference between survival and relegation.

CC: What have you made of Ruben Loftus-Cheek?

TEB: He’s doing well. His England performances have excessively increased his reputation but he has not quite performed the same for Palace, despite a few good games. He was the best player under de Boer, playing centrally and given license to go from box to box. Under Hodgson, he’s played a wider role and it hasn’t helped.

CC: What was it like when Sakho got that 90+2 minute winner against Stoke City?

TEB: That was a great feeling. It was the first time Palace had scored a 90+ minute winning goal at home since 1998 so it was a sign that the luck at Selhurst might be changing.

Advertisement

Broom Hill Garden Buildings

CC: Do you think you are getting the best out of Christian Benteke?

TEB: No. He was injured from September until mid-November which hasn’t helped but for him not to score a goal this season, after his heroics last campaign, is disappointing. He didn’t fit de Boer’s style of play and still looks unfit in fairness so we are expecting more from him.

CC: Wayne Hennessy and Scott Dann both missed out against WBA. Are you concerned with all the injuries that Palace seem to get this season?

TEB: Injuries have been a common theme for a few years and it is unclear whether that is pure bad luck or a deeper problem within the medical department. It doesn’t help, particularly when the squad is very thin. Hodgson was only able to name five subs last week.

CC: How will Palace set up against Bournemouth?

TEB: Two banks of four, Zaha playing off Benteke.

CC: Are you optimistic of finishing above at least three sides this season?

TEB: We’re quietly confident. There are some really poor sides this season - a result of the financial divide in the league - which could either play in our favour if we improve or could see us fall into that category ourselves.

CC: So, Crystal Palace are finding their feet and even some goals at Selhurst Park. They have also been looking to the future with a new ground plan announced in the last week. Another win and they'll be out of the bottom three. Things may lean towards this not being a good time to play the Eagles, but AFCB have also had a rough patch and are looking to add to their away wins and compared to the fixtures coming up, Palace doesn't seem such a bad place to visit this Saturday.

You can read my answers to the Eagles Beak's questions by visiting the Eagles Beak site.

Palace see survival hopes rise after simple win at Bournemouth

Match Report

AFCB 0 v 2 Crystal Palace

31 January 2017

Attendance: 11,286

AFCB and Palace enter the field.

The Cherries stooped to their 11 defeat of the season by going down 0-2 at home to a Palace side that did not have to do a great deal to take all three points. Palace simply defended well and ensured the Cherries could not find away down their flanks, and this nullifying tactic saw them through the first half with the help of some innocuous free kicks that referee Jonathan Moss handed out like confetti, even if he did not seem to want to book any one. This all slowed AFCB's game and the shattering blow that Scott Dean's close in goal provided, two minutes into the second half, suddenly gave AFCB a burden which they just couldn't manage to comeback from. A last 20 minutes finally saw AFCB find a bit of fight in their belly, but it was far too late and an error from Simon Francis in added on time was also turned into a second goal, as Andros Townsend crossed well to pick out Christian Benteke who headed in for Sam Allardyce's first win since he took the Palace job.

AFCB look to add to their home wins.

Palace had not won under Sam Allardyce before this game.

AFCB made a few changes with Simon Francis returning to the side, while Brad Smith came in for an injured Charlie Daniels and Benik Afobe came in for Callum Wilson.

The match was a crucial one in that Palace were still in the bottom three at kick off, while AFCB new that a win could make a massive difference to their gap above the bottom three. It was quite a sedate start to the game until van Aanholt ploughed down the left wing and found McArthur, who in turn saw Wilfred Zaha on the edge of the box. The Palace winger took no time in lining up a shot and hit a low drive against the post in the third minute.

Brad Smith was busy keeping Zaha from getting down the right wing. When AFCB did win another free kick though and Puncheon hit the wall the ball back in landed right at Scott Dann's feet but he hit a poor shot wide from six yards.

Advertisement 

Broom Hill Garden Buildings

If that didn't unsettle AFCB, then a double attempted punch clearance from Boruc a few moments later sent the jitters around the stadium. The Cherries were getting pulled up for just about everything by a rather picky referee who wouldn't let the game run. It suited Palace as they could just launch high balls into the box for Benteke and hope for a chance.

AFCB's first real shot came on 22 minutes when Josh King turned quickly from the edge of the box and hit a strong drive that veered just wide. Stanislas later also saw his deflected shot land just wide of the Palace goal in what had been a tame first half for chances created.

Palace should have extended the lead when Zaha brought almost a point blank save out of Boruc from six yards on 39 minutes, which meant the teams went in 0-0 at half time.

Allsop is among the subs with Federici missing.

Half time score baord.

The second half was just beginning when Palace's first goal came after a quickly won corner. The corner was punched away by Boruc to van Aanholt, and the pass out wide for Puncheon saw the ball fired back into the box, and a flick on made the ball loop to the far post where Scot Dann stabbed the ball home.

AFCB fans might have expected the Cherries to finally find their top gear now, but rather like the January transfer window, it was beginning to look like a bit of a let down of a performance. While Wilshere was happy to accept the passes and look for others and Josh King looked fired up, there was not much else stirring for the Cherries.

Ryan Fraser was getting doubled up on and muscled out of the game by Ward, who even crowded his arms round the wee man in an embrace to stop him at one point, and still was not carded. van Aanholt missed a good centrally placed chance to test Boruc when he shot over and the only happy cheer form the Cherries' fans was to see Ward finally get a yellow card.

AFCB were making  more mistakes now with Brad Smith giving McArthur a shot that he blazed over. Howe needed to make changes and on the hour it was Callum Wilson who came on for the luckless Afobe, and Jordan Ibe who replaced Junior Stanislas.

Ryan Fraser put in a free kick that dribbled off a group of players but just not fast enough to trick Hennessey who could claim the ball without any alarm. Harry Arter came on for Brad Smith while Andrew Surman filled in at centre-back with the Cherries reorganising.

At last, with 20 minutes to go there was a bit of energy and excitement to AFCB's play. Jordan Ibe was getting down the right and putting crosses in. Josh King was making a heroic run in twisting an turning  past five players before finally being fouled.  This was more like it.

At one point King dashed in between Puncheon and Ward to reclaim a lost cause of a ball that was running out of play to great cheers from the AFCB fans. King was clearly wanting his team-mates to pick up his tempo. While we saw shots fired wide from Arter and Steve Cook drill a great low drive inches wide, there was nothing to really worry Hennessey in the Palace goal until four minutes of added time went up, and Jack Wilshere hit a stinging free kick shot that came off the post, while Hennessey turned quickly to reclaim the ball.

Just when the ground started to empty, it was a long kick out from the Palace keeper that made the victory even more complete for Sam Allardyce. Simon Francis had lots of time to make a clearance from the kick and instead of passing to Adam Smith he put the ball straight int the path of substitute Andros Townsend who whipped in a deep cross for Christian Benteke to head past Boruc and make it 0-2.

Arter made a good impression when he came on.

Scott Dann  and Wayne Hennessey celebrate their win.

Summary

The Cherries may not have liked the misty rain or the month of January, but they came out like a tortoise not quite sure if they should be eating off scraps or waiting for someone to give them a plate full of delicious chances in front of goal. The quality was missing and Palace were great at putting up an organised double-dike defence of men in front of the ball that was simply impenetrable. Suddenly the finishing line of somewhere between 36-40 points looks a long way away if this side cannot find some belief and start working together to take games by the scruff of the neck. All Palace had to do was wait for one of the balls they put in the box to land at the foot or head of one of their players, and when Scott Dann got on the end of one of those crosses, you couldn't see any way back for the Cherries.

Where do AFCB go from here? Goodison.

AFCB
Boruc, A Smith, Francis, S Cook, B Smith (Arter), Surman, Wilshere, Stanislas (Ibe 62),
King, Fraser, Afobe (C Wilson 61)

AFCB Subs

Allsop, Gosling, Pugh, Arter, C Wilson, Mings, Ibe

Palace
Hennessey, Ward, Tomkins, Dann, Delaney, van Aanholt, Zaha, Cabaye (Ledley),
McArthur (Townsend), Puncheon (Flamini), Benteke

Palace Subs
Speroni, Flamini, Remy, Campbell, Townsend, Ledley, Fryers

AFCB Ratings

Boruc 6, A Smith 5, Francis 5, S Cook 6, B Smith 6 (Arter 6), Surman 5, Wilshere 7, Stanislas 5  (Ibe 6), King 7, Fraser 6, Afobe 5(C Wilson 5)

Referee Rating: 3/10 Jonathan Moss - too many stoppages in play. It really was frustrating and Ryan Fraser was given no protection at all. Can't blame the ref for AFCB's poor performance though.

The Cherry Chimes' Newsletter is out today.

Cherry Chimes' February Newsletter brings you the best stories on the blog and the thoughts behind them from last month, plus there is a special Newsletter article entitled: Are AFCB just making up the numbers?

To sign up for the newsletter just complete the form below - like all good things it's free:

Email Address 

First Name

Last Name

Email Format

• html
• text

Are Palace in more trouble than AFCB?

I guess we will only find out how Crystal Palace are doing this season when AFCB take them on this Saturday. Neither wants to be in this position but the loser will surely be propping up the table and for the Cherries it has been not so unexpected considering the teams they have played so far. But for Palace it must have been sickening to lose to WBA and if they lose this one they'll know they are going to be in a battle at the wrong end of the table.

Alan Pardew has not held the cash back this summer, but his transfers in may not be the kind of players to truly excite. His biggest signing is Christian Benteke who was a real misfit at Liverpool but was a solid enough striker for Aston Villa. The price-tag was huge though at £27m and Benteke will need quality crosses into the box to make an impact. Palace will hope that comes from Andros Townsend, who seems to be a bit of a lost sole having moved from Spurs to Newcastle and now to Palace. I do wonder if the big forward is something that Pardew can't get out of his head though. It didn't work with Emmanuel Adebayor and if Benteke doesn't hit the spot it will be a lot of pressure on Connor Wickham, now that Dwight Gayle and of course Glenn Murray are no longer at the club.

It's a game neither side can afford to lose.

The big departure was Yannick Bolassie to Everton. How much of a miss he will be is what Crystal Palace's season may hang on. If Townsend can bridge that gap they may be okay, but if they struggle to get the goals and expect Wilfred Zaha to have a sensational season then they could come unstuck. Yesterday, Spurs were linked with Zaha, so they could also be without him, although chairman Steve Parish was adamant on TalkSport that Zaha was going  nowhere his transfer window. Mile Jedinak was also a solid performer for them, now at Villa. They'll hope that James Tomkins from West Ham is a signing that stops goals going in at their end, but you wonder where the excitement is in this Palace side. Puncheon is always a wild card who can be brilliant on his day or the man Pardew can't wait to sub while Campbell and Lee Chong-Yong won't score too many. The Eagles quality is really found in Yohan Cabaye in midfield, but I wonder if he should be playing in a stronger side.

Of course Palace will feel they owe this Bournemouth side a beating having lost to them at Selhurst Park last season. The biggest obstacle that Eddie Howe can put in front of Palace though is to play Benik Afobe, just so they know they could be in for another tough 90 minutes.

Rival Lines: The Eagles Beak - our league form is horrendous!

Rival Lines
Match Preview: Crystal Palace v AFCB
Blogger Interview: The Eagles Beak
Twitter @TheEaglesBeak

This week we had the chance to chat with Jay Crame who jointly edits the Palace site The Eagles Beak. I have a confession to make in that visiting Selhurst Park is always something I look forward to as it is only about 40 minutes drive from my house or a quick train trip. But even with that convenience, I would rather travel down to Bournemouth most Saturdays to watch the team that means everything to me. But what does Jay think about the club he loves and the start they have made to this season?

CC: Are Palace fans as gutted as AFCB supporters that this is already a bottom of the table clash?

TEB: Perhaps but it is very early days indeed. I think most fans were expecting to win the opening game against the Baggies but lose the trip to Spurs, so I guess we are a win behind where we should be. The start of any season is always quite odd in terms of expectations as you hope new signings gel immediately but they often need time. Puts a little more onus on our clash as we will want to pick up a point or three going into the international break.

CC: How unlucky were Palace in their two games against Spurs and WBA as you seemed to have been victims of late goals in these games?

TEB: Against West Brom we played well in the first half and had we scored I am convinced that we would have gone on to win the game. You know what you are going to get against a Tony Pulis side, more so having seen what he did at Palace. The longer the game went on without us scoring you could just see them scoring from a set piece which is exactly what they did. The performance against Spurs was better but it was the very same result, late set piece proving the difference. One thing is clear, Palace are hard to break down but need to be much more clinical with chances that come our way.

CC: Do you think the side has fully recovered after the defeat to Man Utd in the FA Cup semi-final and the loss of form at the end of last season?

TEB: The league form in 2016 has been absolutely horrendous and there really is little excuse and it is foolish to think that the start of a new season wipes the slate clean. The fact is, these opening two games have continued in similar vein and that is the last thing Alan Pardew would have wanted. It sounds crazy but he is under pressure to get a result now as the fans are becoming restless. You cannot ignore the form that got us to the cup final though which is proof that we can get results against Premier League sides. Maybe we just need to go back to treating every game as a cup tie!


CC: Is the £27m spent on Benteke well spent or would you have preferred a quicker striker like Berahino for that kind of money?

TEB: Having seen Benteke make his debut for Palace against Blackpool in the League Cup the initial signs are good. He showed glimpses of what we can expect - strong in the air, agile and has quick feet. It was only forty-five minutes but it certainly wets the appetite. Is any player worth that kind of money? I don't believe so but football is in a world of its own and being in the top division you just have to try and keep up while trying to keep on the straight and narrow. I would never have said Palace would shell out this amount of money on a player which has smashed our transfer record but I'm hopefully that it will be a very wise addition.

CC: Was Conner Wickham the right striker to keep considering that Palace let Dwight Gayle go to Newcastle in the summer?

TEB: We seem destined to play a formation that will be much more midfield orientated with a lone striker. Dwight Gayle is a natural goalscorer but he struggles to play the loan striker role. He tried but it just did not work out. He will score 20+ goals in the Championship this season, no doubt about it so I will be intrigued to see how he does on a potential return to the Premier League. Connor Wickham plays the loan striker well but he need support from the midfield which he has not had in the two league games so far. Now he has Benteke to compete with which should make him up his game, in fact, he did just that against Blackpool, scored minutes after replacing the Belgian.

CC: Has the departure of Jedinak to leave for Aston Villa left the team more exposed?

TEB: It is telling that Mile did not sign for another Premier League side and facing facts, he would not make our first eleven with everyone fit. He goes with our very best wishes as he been a huge part of where we find ourselves today but however much I do not like saying it, there is always a time for a player to move on and this was his.

CC: Was the Yannick Bolasie move (£28m according to Sky Sports) good for Palace and is Andros Townsend a good enough replacement?

TEB: I am confident that the purchase of Townsend was not to replace Bolasie but it did soften the deal going through as it looked as though we did. The fee was too much to turn down and while many think we should no longer be a selling club, every player has their price. It is a great deal for Palace but while Bolasie is an exciting player, at the same time he is frustrating but that is what you have to put up with from skillful, wide players. He really needs to learn to perform more often as with the price-tag there is no doubt that the Everton fans will not be as patient as the Palace fans have been with him.

CC: Is Pardew the right man to lead Crystal Palace to a top 10 finish?

TEB: That is a hard question to answer at the moment with the possibility of a couple more players expected to come in before the transfer window ends. We are likely to have the personnel to push for a top 10 finish but I would prefer that we put an end to this wretched form we have been on since the start of the year. With Benteke on board now, I am sure he will add a new dimension to the team as well as that boost that we can actually score goals.

CC: Which three clubs do you think will be relegated from the Premier League this season?

TEB: This is a massive season both at the top and bottom of the table. It is likely to be close at both ends too but for me, the three that I think will go down are Hull City, Burnley and Sunderland.

CC: What formation do you expect Pardew to play against AFC Bournemouth and do you expect many changes from the starting line up in the last game?

TEB: The classic one up front formation with Benteke starting in that role while hopefully we will see the return of James McArthur and Yohan Cabaye to the starting line up. Many, including myself want to see Steve Mandanda replace Hennessey in goal but we may have to wait a couple more games for that.

CC: What do you think the score will be between the Eagles and AFCB?

TEB: We owe you one from last season and with the addition of Benteke, Palace will just edge it 2-1

CC: Thank you Jay for your thoughtful answers. I am pleased to hear that there is optimism in your words and the season is as you say two-games young. AFCB and Palace need to improve fast though and I get the feeling this could already be a 'six pointer' or at least steer one of the sides in the right direction and the other one into a more despondent mood. I'm backing AFCb to get a win though for the first time this season having suggested that they would lose their first two games. It's a 1-2 away win for me - same as last season!

Make sure you have a read of The Eagles Beak. There are not so many Crystal Palace sites and this one is a good one with views on Christian Benteke and the departed Jedinek who will be playing his football with Tommy Elphick this season and the Villa.

Premier Talk: Have the BBC got it right with another Premier League show?

Transfer News - Ben Whitfield has joined Yeovil Town until January.