Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the Conference League match.
Crystal Palace, after two clean-sheet wins in the Premier League and the EFL Cup, will try to make amends for the defeat against AEK Larnaca (0:1), while AZ Alkmaar will aim to take three points again and produce an upset.
Crystal Palace
In the Conference League, Crystal Palace opened with a win over Dynamo Kyiv (2:0), but the loss to AEK Larnaca with 1.76 xG against 0.20 for the Cypriots was a wake-up call. That slip was Crystal Palace’s first home defeat of the current season. They concede fewer than one goal per game this season, while in attack, even without the departed Eberechi Eze, they look solid. In their last 10 matches in all competitions, the squad scored in eight, failing to find the net only against the aforementioned AEK Larnaca and Arsenal.
AZ Alkmaar
AZ Alkmaar are third in the Eredivisie, but in the UEFA Europa Conference League they have not impressed: a heavy defeat to the same AEK Larnaca (0:4) after the dismissal of Alexandre Penetra in the 2nd minute, and a narrow win over Slovan Bratislava (1:0) with 30 shots and 3.55 xG. Their attack clearly struggle in Europe, although in the Dutch league they average more than two goals per match. The defence only faltered at the start of the season; in the last five matches they conceded only twice and kept three clean sheets.
Crystal Palace vs AZ Alkmaar Prediction
The defeat to AEK Larnaca looked like an accident; against AZ Alkmaar, Crystal Palace should respond. The match is likely to be low-scoring, but the hosts should at least avoid defeat.
