West Brom vs Crystal Palace: Match Preview

West Brom face the Eagles at the Hawtorns in a crucial relegation battle on Saturday.

McAuley scores a header in West Brom's 2-0 win at home to Palace last year.

Match Preview
After a nightmare start to the new campaign for both West Brom and Crystal Palace, with neither side finding a victory until the middle of September, the future may have looked bleak in the eyes of even the most optimistic of Albion and Palace supporters, particularly given their tags of pre-season relegation favourites. The situation for both clubs looks a bit brighter now, lurking, albeit just, outside the dreaded drop zone in 14th and 16th position, and a solitary point separates the two as they go into Saturday’s contest.
West Brom will be buoyed from their respectable point against Manchester United last Monday, a match in which they were just minutes away from a famous victory, and Palace will have to be wary of a side now rapidly growing in confidence, bouncing back after a disappointing beginning to the season. Having played Manchester United, Liverpool and Tottenham in their previous four fixtures, the Baggies will be more than satisfied with a return of seven points from those games, offering them a solid platform to push on from. Star striker Saido Berahino will look to continue his goalscoring form, which has seen him net five goals in his last four appearances, as the Baggies search for just their second home win of the season.
Similarly, Crystal Palace head into Saturday’s encounter with only the one away win this season, but the Palace faithful will acknowledge that things could be a lot worse right now after Tony Pulis’ resignation just days before the start of the season left the club in turmoil. The man appointed to replace the popular Welshman, Neil Warnock, has started brightly, remaining unbeaten in his opening four fixtures before succumbing to back-to-back defeats in his most recent matches. Warnock, and Palace, will be eager to return to winning ways as soon as possible and a trip to the Midlands is one that they will relish. The Eagles have lost just one of their previous eight meetings with Albion in all competitions, and have picked up all their points this season against sides in the bottom half, but they’ll know that stats will mean for nothing when the two teams step out onto the pitch on Saturday afternoon. Both managers will recognise that the chance to claim a crucial win against a relegation rival could really kickstart a season, and will try to grab the opportunity with both hands. Expect a feisty affair.
Team News
Albion goalkeeper Ben Foster has recovered from a calf injury and is likely to return to the starting XI, replacing Boaz Myhill between the sticks. There still remains concerns further up the field for the Baggies, with Jonas Olsson struggling with an achilles injury and Claudio Yacob unavailable due to personal problems in his home country. Silvestre Varela is still sidelined following groin surgery.
Palace have some injury worries of their own and Warnock will face a dilemma at centre back, with Scott Dann out with a knee injury and Damien Delaney suspended following his dismal against Chelsea in Palace’s last outing. Martin Kelly or Adrian Mariappa is likely to play alongside Brede Hangeland at the heart of the defence, with the other slotting in at right back and Joel Ward starting at left back. Meanwhile, James McArthur remains doubtful after picking up a knock against Chelsea.