What Crystal Palace need to do to return to winning ways

Adrian Clarke looks at key tactical points and players who can make the difference in Matchweek 8.

Team analysis - Crystal Palace

Still without a Premier League win this season, Oliver Glasner and Palace have plenty to work on.

Losing key players Michael Olise and Joachim Andersen was always going to force readjustments, but the Eagles have still underperformed.

In Matchweek 8, they travel to Nottingham Forest, where Glasner's opposite number Nuno Espirito Santo will be serving a touchline ban.

However, the Palace head coach will be more concerned by the issues with his own team, in every department.

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Defence must be more settled

Remarkably, Glasner has selected a different defensive trio for all seven of the club's league matches so far.  

This has had an unsettling effect, and at times, the lack of a consistent partnership at the back has been exposed by opponents.

For example, in the build-up to Tomas Soucek’s goal for West Ham United at Selhurst Park, Chadi Riad (No 34, circled below) was drawn wide to cover for retreating wing-back Tyrick Mitchell, while Marc Guehi stayed central.  
 
This fractured shape left a gaping hole for Jarrod Bowen to exploit, as shown below.

In Palace's 2-2 draw with Leicester City, a loose pass in central midfield created a turnover that saw Maxence Lacroix and Nathaniel Clyne both get drawn towards the ball, leaving Guehi in a 1v1 with Jamie Vardy.

We can see below how the Leicester striker ran through to score. 

Last season, Glasner’s proactive style of play was a breath of fresh air, and Palace thrived under his new management.  

So far in 2024/25, they have not taken full of advantage of that boldness, while at the other end they have been punished for taking risks.  

In their 2-0 loss to West Ham, Max Kilman’s driving run into midfield caught left wing-back Mitchell stranded inside the opposition half.  

As seen below, a colossal gap opened up for Bowen to surge into, with a disconnected Palace back three (circled) once again pulled badly out of position. 

Chelsea also exposed Palace after they tried to be front-footed in their approach at Stamford Bridge.

Guehi initially won possession and surged forward on a solo run towards the edge of the box. However, play broke down and, with too many men ahead of the ball, Palace faced a 4v2 situation, from which Nicolas Jackson scored.

These are just some examples of the poor goals that Palace have leaked this season.  

Moving forward, it feels imperative that Glasner settles on a consistent back three, so the defenders can form an important understanding.

Midfield needs defensive strength

The back three have not been helped by two of Glasner's strongest defensive midfielders being hampered by injuries. Cheick Doucoure has started only one match, while Jefferson Lerma has been limited to two appearances in midfield.

Doucoure has recovered from an ankle issue though, and is expected to be fit enough to be involved against Forest on Monday night.

Adam Wharton’s form has suffered while Daichi Kamada and Will Hughes have been less effective in their work off the ball. This has in part contributed to a vulnerability to fast breaks - in that situation, only one club has faced more shots than Palace, while only one team has conceded more goals.

Most shots and goals against from fast breaks 24/25

Eze requires extra freedom 

Olise’s sale to Bayern Munich has heaped extra pressure on star man Eberechi Eze to be Palace's inspiration.  

When opponents had both players to contend with last season, each of them tended to enjoy a little more space and freedom. This season, Eze has found himself being marked extra tightly as the team's chief creator.

Eze's creativity 23/24 v 24/25

His number of completed dribbles has halved, and he has been far less of a goal threat in 2024/25 than he was last season.

This graphic below comparing his impact on the team provides clear evidence of a downturn from Eze, which was always going to have a detrimental effect on results.

Using Eze, Palace's best player, in a slightly different role must be under consideration, but for now, Glasner seems wedded to the current formation.  

Forwards have to work on finishing

The balance of Palace’s attack still needs a little fine tuning.  

New signing Eddie Nketiah has looked sharp in a right-sided role, but he wants to play down the middle, where Jean-Philippe Mateta also operates.   

This has made some of Palace's play inside the final third a little stilted and uneven.  

Finishing has also been way below par and must improve.

As you can see from the table below, the Eagles’ attacking output has diminished greatly this season.

Palace's 23/24 v 24/25 attacking stats

If they can remedy this issue, it will ease the pain as Glasner's new-look XI urgently tries to develop all areas of their game.

We do not expect the head coach to rip up his 3-4-3 or 3-4-2-1 formula, given how well it worked during the second part of last season.

Yet Palace need to improve, with and without the ball, if they want to return to winning ways in the coming weeks, starting at the City Ground on Monday evening.

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