Cardiff welcome Crystal Palace to the Cardiff City Stadium on Saturday afternoon as they continue to fight for Premier League survival.
With two games to play, the Bluebirds need to get something from their remaining fixtures to stand any chance of playing top flight football next season. They currently sit in 18th and four points off safety, and must also rely on relegation rivals Brighton to drop points this month.
Crystal Palace, meanwhile, are in a far better position, having secured their safety earlier this month. The Eagles are in 12th place at the moment, though could only rise as high as 11th by the end of the season - providing they win their remaining fixtures and West Ham drop points.
Here's our breakdown of this weekend's crucial clash.
Where to Watch
| When Is Kick Off? | Saturday 4 May |
| What Time Is Kick Off? | 17:30 (BST) |
| Where Is it Played? | Cardiff City Stadium |
| TV Channel/Live Stream? | BT Sport 1 |
| Referee? | Michael Oliver |
Team News
NW: "We’ve got @CPFC and @ManUtd, and we’ll just go and try and do our best.
— Cardiff City FC (@CardiffCityFC) April 27, 2019
"Who’s to say we’re not still in the fight?
"We’re not out of it yet. You just don’t know in football.”
https://t.co/b0lORKYQ9x#FULCAR #CityAsOne
Cardiff have a number of absentees from their squad, with Sol Bamba, Callum Paterson, Joe Ralls and Matthew Connolly all out with long term injuries. Harry Arter is doubftul with a calf injury, while Aron Gunnarsson and Kenneth Zohore should recover in time from minor knocks.
Crystal Palace have no fresh injuries, though Roy Hodgson will travel to south Wales without a quartet of defensive stars. Mamadou Sakho, Pape Souare and James Tomkins are all injured, while Jeffrey Schlupp is unlikely to play again this season.
Predicted Lineups
|
Cardiff |
Etheridge; Peltier, Ecuele Manga, Morrison, Bennett; Bacuna, Gunnarsson; Hoilett, Camarasa; Mendez-Laing; Niasse |
| Crystal Palace | Guaita; Wan-Bissaka, Dann, Kelly, Van Aanholt; Meyer, Kouyate, Milivojevic, McArthur; Zaha, Benteke |
Head to Head Record
Cardiff and Crystal Palace have met 68 times, with the Eagles recording twice as many wins as Saturday's opponents. The south Londoners have won 32 of the meetings in contrast to Cardiff's 16 wins, with their encounters ending all square on 20 occasions.
In the reverse fixture on Boxing Day, the two sides played out a drab goalless draw at Selhurst Park. Fast forward five months and while Palace are two places better off, Cardiff have since dropped one place into the dreaded relegation zone.
This will be just the fourth Premier League meeting between the two, with Crystal Palace unbeaten across all three of their previous top flight encounters. Cardiff's last win came back in 2012, when they won 2-1 in south Wales thanks to goals from Gunnarsson and Craig Noone.
Recent Form
Cardiff have just one win in their last six games, failing to score in four of those. With just two home wins all year and the Bluebirds desperate to pick up a vital three points after back to back defeats, it is going to be a huge ask for Neil Warnock's side at the Cardiff City Stadium.
Crystal Palace followed their superb win at Arsenal with a goalless draw with Everton, but remain in strong form with three wins from their last five. The Eagles are looking for their third consecutive away win, having won at the Emirates and St. James' Park against Newcastle.
Here's how each team has performed in their last five fixtures.
| Cardiff | Crystal Palace |
| Fulham 1-0 Cardiff (27/04) | Crystal Palace 0-0 Everton (27/04) |
| Cardiff 0-2 Liverpool (21/04) | Arsenal 2-3 Crystal Palace (21/04) |
| Brighton 0-2 Cardiff (16/04) | Crystal Palace 1-3 Manchester City (14/04) |
| Burnley 2-0 Cardiff (13/04) | Newcastle 0-1 Crystal Palace (06/04) |
| Manchester City 2-0 Cardiff (03/04) | Tottenham 2-0 Crystal Palace (03/04) |
Prediction
A defeat for Cardiff would confirm their relegation to the Championship, regardless of Brighton's result against Arsenal on Sunday. It is simply a must win game for Neil Warnock's side, and with no room for mistakes it will be a massive game at the Cardiff City Stadium.
With their recent form not good enough and Crystal Palace in excellent form on the road, the Eagles look likely to leave with three points. Though Cardiff certainly won't go down without a fight, Saturday may well mark the end of the road for the Bluebirds in the Premier League.
Prediction: Cardiff 1-2 Crystal Palace
Source : 90min