27th Aug 2024 • Written by Barnabas Baricz Hughes

Crystal Palace look to kick-start season against Norwich City in Carabao Cup second round

Match Details: Premier League, 27/08/2024, 20:00 Kick Off, Selhurst Park

Palace hope to boost mood after two defeats in the Premier League

After losing their first two games of the season against Brentford and West Ham, Crystal Palace will need to put on a strong showing against Norwich in the Carabao Cup if they are to give their fans anything to cheer about.

The Eagles were pretty poor on Saturday, conceding two goals in five minutes, not long after Daichi Kamada replaced Jefferson Lerma as a defensive midfielder, a move that baffled many at Selhurst Park. 

Odsonne Edouard’s poor first touches, poor ball-holding skills and inability to hit the ball on target also caused some frustration. 

In defence, new signing Chadi Riad got his first start and although shaky at times, he grew into his role and was able to display his composure on the ball. 

Credit: Patrick Khachfe/Getty Images

Glasner will no doubt give Riad another start against Norwich as it is imperative that the young Moroccan settles quickly in South London.

Another player hoping to get a full 90 minutes is Ismaïla Sarr after coming on for the last 20 against West Ham. 

Sarr was quick, strong and injected life into what was a poor second half display from Glasner’s side. 

He came close to halving the deficit but was unable to make proper contact on Tyrick Mitchell’s cross with ten minutes to play. 

The Senegalese international can certainly take heart from his individual performance and will want to perform well on Tuesday to stake a claim for a Premier League starting place on Sunday at Stamford Bridge.

Norwich also have something to prove

After coming 6th and losing to Leeds in the playoff semi-final last season, the Canaries started their campaign with a 2-0 defeat to newly promoted Oxford United. They then picked up a win against Stevenage in the Carabao Cup and two successive draws against Blackburn and Sheffield United. 

Credit: MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Beating a Premier League team will certainly be a confidence boost and prove that they have what it takes to make that final push for promotion this season. 

Early Team News

As noted, Riad will hope to start against Norwich, as will Rob Holding. The ex-Arsenal centre-back has only made one appearance for Palace since arriving last year, this was in the 3-0 defeat to Manchester United last season in the Carabao Cup third round. 

He has had a few injuries and although featuring minimally during pre-season, it’s surely a good idea to give him an appearance and give Marc Guehi a rest.

Cheick Doucoure did not make an appearance against West Ham much to the surprise of many, especially since he came off the bench against Brentford. 

Glasner hasn’t indicated that he has picked up an injury or is looking to make a move elsewhere, so it is possible that he will see minutes on Tuesday.

Player to Watch: Ismaïla Sarr

As mentioned above, Sarr impressed in the brief 20 minutes that he was on the pitch and will be looking to do more if he is given a full 90. 

Although Glasner doesn’t play with traditional wingers, the 26 year-old has been known to play as a striker or as an attacking midfielder on the right.

Credit: Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images

In his last season for Marseille, Sarr scored 5 goals and assisted a further 5. Previous to that, he scored a total of 34 goals for Watford across four seasons, two in the Premier League and two in the Championship. 

Predicted Lineups 

Crystal Palace: Johnstone (GK); Mitchell, Riad, Guéhi, Holding, Clyne; Wharton, Lerma; Kamada, Edouard, Sarr.

Norwich City: Long (GK); Stacey, Hills, Warner, Fisher; Nunez, McLean; Kamara, Amankwah, Sainz; Hernández.

Match Officials

Referee: Matthew Donohue

Assistants: Paul Hodskinson and Blake Antrobus

Fourth Official: Gavin Ward

Thumbnail Credit: Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images

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