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Spotlight on... Crystal Palace

Fri 13 September 2019, 16:25|Tottenham Hotspur

We are back in Premier League action on Saturday as we welcome Crystal Palace to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (3pm).

Our visitors from south London will become the first team to make a second trip to our new home after they were our inaugural opponents in the stadium’s opener back in April.

So ahead of the test against the Eagles, we put our opponents under the spotlight.

Team news

Palace boss Roy Hodgson has confirmed that defender Martin Kelly and forward Connor Wickham will miss the game through injury, while there are set to be late fitness tests for centre-back Scott Dann and midfielder James McArthur.

Palace’s form

It’s been a very positive start to the new season for Palace as they currently sit fourth in the Premier League. An opening day stalemate with Everton might have been followed up with a disappointing 1-0 defeat away to newly promoted Sheffield United, but back-to-back wins away to Manchester United (2-1) and then at home to Aston Villa (1-0) have sent the Eagles soaring up the table.

New faces

Roy Hodgson made five new additions to his squad over the summer, strengthening all areas. Defensive experience was brought in with the capture of centre-back Gary Cahill after he was released by Chelsea, while goalkeeper Stephen Henderson has been signed to provide another option between the sticks. Former Cardiff City midfielder Victor Camarasa has joined from Real Betis while James McCarthy has moved to south London from Everton. Then, up front, Palace have turned last season’s season-long loan of Jordan Ayew into a permanent deal.

Leader of the opposition

On Thursday, Roy Hodgson celebrated the second anniversary of his appointment at Selhurst Park and it has certainly been a positive two years in charge of the Eagles as, despite difficult beginnings in south London, he has ensured Palace have maintained their Premier League status. Now the oldest manager to ever be in charge of a Premier League side, the Eagles are the 72-year-old's fifth Premier League club, and his 20th job in the game in total, having been in the hot seat at Malmo, Internazionale, Grasshoppers, Liverpool and the England national team, to name just a few.

Last five meetings

3 April, 2019 – Spurs 2-0 Crystal Palace – Premier League
27 January, 2019 – Crystal Palace 2-0 Spurs – FA Cup
10 November, 2018 – Crystal Palace 0-1 Spurs – Premier League
25 February, 2018 – Crystal Palace 0-1 Spurs – Premier League
5 November, 2017 – Spurs 1-0 Crystal Palace – Premier League

The numbers game

8 – We have won our last eight Premier League games against Crystal Palace, conceding just one goal in that run.

7 – Crystal Palace are winless in their last seven away Premier League games against us (D2 L5), failing to score in each of the last six.

5 – Since the start of the 2016/17 season, Crystal Palace have won away at five of the ‘big six’ teams, which is more than any other side in the league during that period. The only team they haven’t managed to secure an away victory against is us.

60 - Of the teams we’ve faced 15-plus times in the Premier League, only versus Sunderland (66%) have we registered a better win ratio than against Crystal Palace (60%).

1 – Roy Hodgson has won just one of his 15 Premier League matches against Spurs (W1 D4 L10) – that win coming during his time as Fulham manager, a 2-1 victory for the west London side in November, 2008.

10 – Mauricio Pochettino has 10 wins in 12 against Palace in the Premier League - his most against any club.

Played for both

Norwegian Steffen Iversen enjoyed seven years with us at White Hart Lane before spending a single season with Crystal Palace later in his career.

Joining us in 1996 from his native side Rosenborg, the striker plundered 47 goals in 177 games in a Spurs shirt and played a key role in our League Cup success in 1999. Scoring the winner in the semi-final against Wimbledon, Steffen then assisted Allan Nielsen's late, late winner in the final against Leicester at Wembley.

The forward departed north London in 2003 and headed to the west Midlands to join Wolves before returning to his homeland a year later. Either side of a spell at Rosenberg, he signed for then Championship side Palace before retiring from the game the following season.