Tottenham v Crystal Palace: Battle of strugglers will deliver goals | OneFootball

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Spurs paid for horror hour at the Cottage

When you're in the dire situation that Tottenham are in, four points above the dropzone going into the midweek round, you can ill afford to start games poorly. At Fulham on Sunday, Spurs were truly abject for the first hour, out-run, out-thought and out-fought. Although the introduction of subs like Mathys Tel and Richarlison sparked a late fightback in a 2-1 defeat, the margin of the loss didn't really reflect the performance.

New Spurs boss Igor Tudor admitted his team had underperformed in every department, although he also took aim at referee Thomas Bramall, describing him as a referee that "favoured the home side." Tudor is the first Spurs boss since Martin Jol 22 years ago to lose his first two Premier League games in charge, and there is no evidence of a short-term "new manager bounce".

Tudor's team selection at Craven Cottage, while limited by injuries, shows how he intends to get Spurs out of this crisis. He selected two strikers in Randal Kolo Muani and Dominic Solanke, with Xavi Simons in the team to supply the ammunition. Alas, that attacking set-up failed to bear fruit as Spurs were consistent overrun in midfield, and Simons gave one of his all-too prevalent displays where his game sinks under the weight of his petulance.

Djed Spence missed the Fulham game with a calf problem, but fellow defenders Kevin Danso and Pedro Porro were able to make their returns from injury. Cristian Romero is still suspended, and there are still a whole host of players missing with injury.

Glasner and Palace set to see failing marriage through

The good times were the best of times. An FA Cup won for the first time in club history, followed by a Community Shield victory against Liverpool. The butterfly-inducing joy and excitement of a maiden European campaign.

The rows were tough. Key players left, and their replacements came too late or didn't come at all. Form faltered, and angry words were uttered in private and in public.

We know that Oliver Glasner will leave Crystal Palace in the summer, and that some fans now believe he should leave earlier, but it seems both parties will see this through to the bitter end. Relegation appears to have been staved off (the Eagles have 35 points on the board), and there is the possibility that Palace could go all the way in the Conference League.

Palace will face Larnaca in the last 16, and even though Larnaca beat them in the league phase, Palace are firm favourites. Realistically they would then have to beat Fiorentina, Shakhtar and perhaps Strasbourg to win the tournament. That's a very tough schedule, but Palace remain the favourites to win the Conference League at 4.0 on the Betfair Exchange.

Wins over Brighton and Wolves have repaired confidence, and January signings are settling. Brennan Johnson set up the opener in the weekend's 2-1 defeat at Manchester United, while Evan Guessand netted the winner against Wolves.

Palace are without influential defender Maxence Lacroix because of suspension, so Chadi Riad is likely to feature in an inexperienced back three.

Goals on the horizon

Tudor is going to try to blast his way out of this mess rather than digging in for narrow victories. Both of his games have featured three goals or more, and I'm pleasantly surprised to see Over 2.5 Goals available to back at 1.9 here. That has paid out in seven of Tottenham's last eight Premier League outings, and four of Palace's last seven. Remember, both teams have big absences in defence.

English Premier League: Tottenham v Crystal Palace (Over/Under 2.5 Goals)

Thursday 5 March, 8.00pm

Keep an eye on strikers for Bet Builder

Jorgen Strand Larsen joined Crystal Palace for big money in January, and has certainly been throwing himself into battle for his new club. At Palace he's had at least two foul involvements in all six of his competitive appearances, and at least three in five of them.

I'll back the Norwegian to have three foul involvements here and I'll do the same with Spurs forward Randal Kolo Muani. The French international thrived under Igor Tudor at Juventus, and the Croatian has clearly told him to be part of an aggressive forward press. Kolo Muani committed six fouls against Spurs and a further four against Fulham, and was fouled in both games.

I'll also back Kolo Muani to have a shot on target. He scored against Arsenal and had two shots against Fulham on Sunday. That treble on the Bet Builder pays out at 5/2.