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The international break is now over, and with that comes the return of Premier League football.
In Crystal Palace’s case, the Eagles make the short trip across London to take on Tottenham Hotspur at their shiny new stadium this Saturday, a repeat of the venue’s first-ever Premier League fixture – Heung-min Son’s goal against Palace last term saw Spurs win that game 1-0.
On paper, you would expect a Spurs win, although Roy Hodgson’s men are currently ahead of their London rivals by two points and are sitting pretty in 4th-place, while Mauricio Pochettino’s side sit 7th.
Let’s take a look at the starting lineup Hodgson should put out against Spurs…
Having gone with the same lineup for the wins over Manchester United and Aston Villa, we think the 72-year-old should make just two changes to his lineup for the trip to north London.
The back four and goalkeeper remain unchanged for us, seeing as they have contributed to the best defence in the league so far this term, having conceded just twice.
Ahead of them, however, we predict that Jeffrey Schlupp – who got the assist for Jordan Ayew’s goal against Manchester United – should drop into midfield to provide pace and energy in the middle of the park, which could prove vital if Palace decide to sit back and counter-attack – the 15-cap Ghana international will be crucial in carrying the ball up the pitch.
In attack, where Schlupp started on the wing last time out in Andros Townsend’s place, we think the former Spurs man should come back into the side for his pace on the break alongside Wilfried Zaha and the in-form Ayew.
James McArthur – who we have stated must step up – is the man who should miss out, making way for Townsend with Schlupp dropping into midfield.
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