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It seems forever since we last played on the Turf. It’s four weeks to be exact, since Chelsea beat us, and since then we’ve been on the road to Brentford, Bournemouth and Everton and brought home three defeats.

I thought the performances became progressively worse in those three games and I am still stunned with how little Everton had to do to beat us by three clear goals. Prior to these games, the away fixtures had been our salvation with four points in the Premier League won on our travels and two League Cup ties won.

Now it really is time to step it up at home where we are still to win a point, where we’ve conceded a grand total of sixteen goals in five games with only four in reply. The fortress that was breached just one last season, incredibly by QPR, has lowered its drawbridge this season although we must accept that four of the five teams to have beaten us have come from the ‘big’ six with Aston Villa, currently fifth in the table, the other Turf Moor victors.

Southampton were the last team to be beaten by us in the Premier League at the Turf back in April 2022 when Matěj Vydra scored the only goal of the game, his last for Burnley.

Crystal Palace are the visitors and, to put things in perspective, they currently sit 13th with exactly the same number of points as Chelsea, the last team we took on at home. But Palace are not one of the big clubs and could never compete financially with the sort of spending Chelsea have got up to in the last couple of windows.

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I thought Dara O’Shea was our best player at Bournemouth last week, and he was the player on media duty this week. He said: “The first time at Turf Moor, I really got a feel for it as a place and as a club. It’s massive to the people of Burnley and you can see what it means to the fans, for us as players it gives us that extra push to do well.”

I did smile when he added, in stark contrast to the words form the drum beating, club shop purchased only flag waving Russell Ball: “It’s great the atmosphere we have here at home and it’s the first time I have ever experienced a one town club. The support has been excellent so far this season, home and away, and we are going to need it once again this weekend.”

I’m not so sure O’Shea should be too pleased at being called up for media duty. Josh Brownhill and Sander Berge were on duty for the last two league games and were promptly left out of the side, and with Jordan Beyer expected to be fit, O’Shea could suffer the same fate.

We’ve learned in the last 24 hours that Aaron Ramsey is injured, ending any speculation as to why he’s been out of the reckoning. We also know that Lyle Foster isn’t considered because of an illness, and that brings to an end the rumours circulating at Bournemouth. Hjalmar Ekdal and Michael Obafemi are on the way back but not ready for first team action and Josh Cullen won’t play today after picking up five yellow cards. He’d been carded in the games against Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest but has added three more in the last three Premier League games. We do, though, have Connor Roberts back after he served his one match ban for the Brentford red card at Bournemouth.

We know there will be changes to the team that played at Bournemouth, the absence of Cullen means at least one, where we lined up: James Trafford, Vitinho, Dara O’Shea, Ameen Al-Dakhil, Charlie Taylor, Josh Cullen, Josh Brownhill, Luca Koleosho, Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson, Anass Zaroury, Zeki Amdouni. Subs: Arijanet Muric, Hannes Delcroix, Jack Cork, Sander Berge, Nathan Redmond, Mike Trésor, Jacob Bruun Larsen, Wilson Odobert, Jay Rodriguez.

Today’s opponents Crystal Palace currently sit thirteenth in the Premier League table with twelve points from their ten games. They’ve won three, drawn three and lost four and are one of four teams on that points total, behind Chelsea and Wolves on goal difference, but above Fulham.

Like us, they’ve struggled to score goals. We’ve both netted eight although the 13 they have conceded is almost half the number of goals that have gone into our net. Only Sheffield United have scored less than us and I think it is fair to say we are some way behind the 26 goals scored by both Aston Villa and Newcastle. Odsonne Édouard (pictured below) has scored half of their goals with defender Joachim Andersen having scored twice.

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They beat Wolves 3-2 at home in early September and that’s the only occasion they’ve scored more than once in a game. Their other two wins have been 1-0, at Sheffield United on the opening day of the season and more recently against Manchester United at Old Trafford, their one away win. Their three draws have been 1-1 at Brentford and home 0-0 draws against Fulham and Nottingham Forest.

Palace could have Eberichi Eze back today from injury that saw him miss all last month’s games. They are still likely to be without both Michael Olise and James Tomkins who are returning from injury.

Last time out they were beaten 2-1 at home by league leaders Spurs when Jordan Ayew reduced the arrears with a stoppage time goal. Their team was: Sam Johnstone, Joel Ward, Joachim Andersen, Marc Guéhi, Tyrick Mitchell, Cheick Doucouré, Jefferson Lerma, Jordan Ayew, Will Hughes, Jeffrey Schlupp, Odsonne Édouard. Subs: Remi Matthews, Rob Holding, Matheus França de Oliveira, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Nathaniel Clyne, Chris Richards, Naouirou Ahamada, Jairo Riedewald, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi.

 

LAST TIME THEY WERE HERE

 

Palace’s last visit to Burnley saw them go 1-0 up, Burnley respond to take a 2-1 lead before Palace went in at half time 3-2 in front. An early second half goal drew us level at 3-3 although Palace could count themselves very fortunate to end the game with eleven players.

Palace started the better and were in front on eight minutes Christian Benteke benefited from a poor Maxwel Cornet header although his shot deflected off James Tarkowski and went in off the post.

What a reaction from Burnley. Ben Mee headed home an Ashley Westwood corner and soon after a Dwight McNeil free kick was headed back across goal for Chris Wood to score what proved to be his last Burnley goal.

Just as we responded to going behind, so did Palace. Benteke again scored to level things with Marc Guéhi scoring their third.

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It needed something special and we got it in the fourth minute of the second half with a Cornet special. His first half performance was so poor that it would have been no surprise to see him substituted at half time. Thankfully he wasn’t and he got on to a Tarkowski flick on to hammer home on the volley, a goal so reminiscent of Robbie Blake’s against Manchester United.

It all ended 3-3 but how Andersen stayed on the pitch when he pulled back Wood was a stunner. Referee Simon Hooper couldn’t have seen it but his assistant had the perfect view, so did the fourth official and then there was the nonsense referred to as VAR, on this occasion the inept Graham Scott. No foul was given either, a ridiculous decision or lack of one.

It all ended 3-3 and we’d now gone four games without defeat.

The teams were;

Burnley: Nick Pope, Matt Lowton, James Tarkowski, Ben Mee, Charlie Taylor, Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson, Josh Brownhill, Ashley Westwood, Dwight McNeil, Chris Wood (Jay Rodriguez 80), Maxel Cornet (Matěj Vydra 84). Subs not used: Wayne Hennessey, Phil Bardsley, Nathan Collins, Kevin Long, Erik Pieters, Jack Cork, Aaron Lennon.

Crystal Palace: Vicente Guaita, Joel Ward, Joachim Andersen, Marc Guéhi, Tyrick Mitchell, Conor Gallagher (Jeffrey Schlupp 81), Luka Milovojevic (Odsonne Édouard 87), Cheick Kouyaté, Jordan Ayew (Michael Olise 58), Christian Benteke, Wilfried Zaha. Subs not used: Jack Butland, Nathaniel Clyne, James Tomkins, Martin Kelly, Will Hughes, Eberechi Eze.

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