Both of these clubs actually sit fairly close to each other in the table, with Crystal Palace down in the relegation zone in 22nd while their hosts are a few places higher in 16th. It certainly doesn’t make nice reading for either club, especially Nottingham Forest who only in May this year featured in a playoff final.
Nottingham Forest’s season has been topsy-turvy although their supporters will be thoroughly disappointed that their club doesn’t look like repeating the last campaigns success. Many thought they underachieved anyway, but Billy Davies knows that he has to lift his side from the depths of 16th considering some of the talent that is available in his squad. In fairness to Davies, recent form hasn’t been too bad and even though Forest lost their last game to Leicester, before that they were unbeaten in four. There’s no doubt that they need more wins under their belt though and Davies must be ruing the amount of lost points after drawing an incredible nine times this season.
Crystal Palace meanwhile are performing exactly as many predicted, with the Eagles facing an extremely tough battle to stay in the division. It would be unjust to say that their position is critical at this stage though, with the club only in the bottom three due to goal difference. However, it’s clear that George Burley’s men are in for a season of struggle with the club simply unable to put together any sort of form. They head into this game on the back of a defeat to Leeds and a draw to Hull and in the latter it was obvious that their main problem is goals, with the team unable to capitalize on a host of chances. What’s more, and worrying as they head into this fixture, they have the worst away form in the division having recorded just the one victory away from Selhurst Park this campaign.
As for team news, Billy Davies heads into this game sweating on the fitness of Paul McKenna and Dele Adebola. McKenna has been struggling for some time with a groin problem while the latter has also missed recent fixtures with a knee complaint. The visitors meanwhile are hopeful of including Darren Ambrose and Alex Marrow, both who missed the last game against Hull. A leg injury prevented former Newcastle man Ambrose from featuring, while Marrow has almost recovered from an ankle issue.
Only six points separate these two sides in the division although we think this will be a comfortable victory for Nottingham Forest. Despite their lowly position, Forest have one of the best home records and with Crystal Palace struggling so much on their travels, our prediction is a comfortable 2-0 win for the City Ground outfit.
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