Leicester City travel to the English capital immediately after the first international break of the 2024/25 Premier League season to face Crystal Palace.
Matchday 4 of the Premier League campaign will feature Crystal Palace playing host to newly-promoted Leicester City who will be looking for a strong footing after one year away from the top-flight.
Leicester was unbeaten in seven of their last eight matches against Crystal Palace, although their last encounter in South London went in favour of Palace thanks to Jean-Philippe Mateta’s last-gasp winner in Roy Hodgson’s return match.
The home side has been in impeccable form as they went undefeated in the last seven Premier League games of 2023/24 and thumped Aston Villa 5-0 on the final day, the joint-biggest top-flight win in the club’s history.
Since the last time these two clubs met, Hodgson went on to win five and draw three of his 10 matches to finish 11th. The Glaziers extended the veteran manager’s contract by a year but it was cut short in February 2024 as he was replaced by Oliver Glasner.
Under the Austrian, Palace enjoyed a strong finish to the season as they equalled their highest Premier League finish of 10th place and a points total of 49. Indeed, only Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea earned more points than Palace since Glasner took charge of the club.
They were in such good form that four Palace players – Eberechi Eze, Marc Guéhi, Dean Henderson and Adam Wharton – were named in England’s Euro 2024 squad, the most of any club for the Three Lions in Germany.
Glasner will thus be keen to build on his fantastic first few months in London but could have to deal with losing a few key players as Michael Olise has already left for Bayern Munich and he could be joined on the exits by Guehi and Eze who are both courting serious interest.
Meanwhile, Palace has already completed the signing of Chadi Riad from Real Betis and Daichi Kamada on a free transfer from Lazio. They will be looking to add some more to their squad to truly evolve as a resilient force under their manager.
Since their most recent league match against Palace, Leicester on the other hand, went down the relegation trapdoor but made a quick return thanks to retaining most of their squad.
The Foxes made the best start to a league season in the EFL Championship as they secured a record eighth second-tier title as well as a joint-record fifth promotion to the Premier League.
They had Enzo Maresca to thank for the dramatic overhaul of their playing style but the mastermind of that expansive approach has now left to take the Chelsea manager’s job. Hence, Steve Cooper has been appointed to steer them to a smooth transition back to the most competitive domestic league in the world.
Leicester kicked off their Premier League season with a 1-1 draw at home to Tottenham on 19 August, and they will be desperate for more performances that sets the tone for their season. The second of their first three away trips to London could be crucial for instilling the belief they need to make their mark again.
Match Tickets
This Premier League fixture takes place on Saturday, 14 September 2024 at 15:00 GMT time. Match tickets are available for sale on the website of each club but priority will be given to ticket holders and club members.
Just over 25,000 seats at Selhurst Park Stadium will most certainly be sold out given it is an early-season occasion and both clubs will have genuine chances of winning the game. This is an opportunity to see both teams playing very open and fans could be treated to a few goals.
Supporters who are eager to attend the game can beat the long waiting time on official sources and get their Crystal Palace vs Leicester City tickets on a resale site.
Team News
Crystal Palace is set to be active in the transfer window considering the likely exits, and they are poised to launch a £35 million bid for Emile Smith Rowe. Fulham is struggling to agree to demands and Palace could swoop in for a man they regard as a fitting replacement for Michael Olise, with Smith Rowe’s desire for regular first-team football being a key factor.
Crystal Palace is also eyeing a move for Ismaila Sarr after a season at Marseille, the Senegalese winger offers bags of Premier League experience and he will represent a quality addition to the ranks.
On the other hand, Leicester City is looking to sign Matias Soule from Juventus for £21 million while they are also in the market for another forward. Soule could be joining the likes of Bobby De Cordova-Reid, Michael Golding, Caleb Okoli and Abdul Fatawu, who was on loan from Sporting Lisbon last term.
Expected Line-ups
There were 13 goals and an assist in 13 games under Glasner for Jean-Philippe Mateta who emerged as the team’s marksman. The Frenchman’s 16 goals proved his career-best top-flight tally so there is a lot to look forward to from the 27-year-old this term.
Crystal Palace: Henderson; Clyne, Andersen, Guehi; Munoz, Richards, Wharton, Mitchell; Kamada, Smith Rowe, Mateta
Leicester must prove themselves again in the top-flight but they have a manager and squad that is stacked with experience in the Premier League. There should be no naivety on their part and their starting 11 should boast a healthy amount of experience at this level.
Leicester: Hermansen; Pereira, Faes, Vestergaard, Justin; Ndidi, Winks; De Cordova-Reid, Mavididi, Fatawu; Vardy
Prediction
This should be an exciting Premier League clash with evenly-matched teams who are eager to impress in the early days of the campaign. Crystal Palace will be looking to kick on this season while Leicester will want to prove they can still compete favourably.
It is set to be an end-to-end encounter and a few goals at both ends should delight the natural fans. The hosts may however hold a slight advantage considering the backing of their home crowd as well as their momentum in the previous season.
Crystal Palace 3-1 Leicester City