Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest — Tips & Analysis

Crystal Palace +0.25: This game has become the same story over and over. Four of the last five meetings between these two finished 1-1, and across 12 meetings they average under 2 goals a game. Palace have also avoided defeat in nine of those 12, so the tie is by far the most common result here. Palace have been up and down, with five wins, four ties and six losses in their last 15 games. They let in more than a goal a game, and they now have to find goals without Mateta, who is injured, and with Disasi suspended. Forest are no more dangerous. They have won two, tied four and lost five of their last 11 games. They manage about a goal a game, and they have won by 2 or more goals just once in that run. Forest are also happy to keep games tight, so expect a slow afternoon with few clear chances at Selhurst Park. Both sides come back from three weeks off, which usually means caution rather than open football. A 1-1 is the honest read, and that keeps Palace on the right side of this one. The warning is simple. Forest have been better on the road than at home this season, and they have won three of the last 12 meetings. A Forest win is the result we need to avoid, but the pattern of these games says they rarely get one.