Crystal Palace vs West Ham United

Premier League New Year’s Day action closes out at Selhurst Park with an exciting, all-London showdown between Crystal Palace and West Ham United.

Since suffering a 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa, Crystal Palace have turned Selhurst Park into a stronghold, going unbeaten in their last three Premier League home games (W2, D1), including a 3-0 thrashing of Norwich City last time out. Though they’ve never been known for their scoring prowess, Patrick Vieira’s men have netted 2+ goals in each of their last three Premier League outings on home turf. That should reinforce their hopes of defying their thoroughly disappointing top-flight record on New Year’s Day, as they’ve only won one of their ten such contests so far (D5, L4). Despite hitting back twice to hold West Ham to a 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture earlier this season, Palace head into proceedings winless in their last three Premier League H2Hs on the trot (D2, L1).

Meanwhile, West Ham United came from behind to land an overwhelming 4-1 victory at Watford in their final Premier League fixture of 2021, halting a run of three league matches without winning (D1, L2). The visitors’ last two Premier League games have seen both sides scoring in matches garnering precisely five goals, highlighting the potential for an action-packed contest here. Topically, each of their last nine top-flight meetings with Palace has witnessed both teams on the scoresheet, with seven of those clashes containing over 2.5 total goals. Interestingly, there is a piece of history for the taking here, as after beating Bournemouth 4-0 in last season’s New Year’s Day encounter, West Ham could register back-to-back such triumphs for the first time in the club’s history.