Crystal Palace vs West Ham United
Premier League, Selhurst Park, Sunday 21 April 2024, 3pm BST
West Ham United continue their 2023/24 Premier League season with a trip to fellow Londoners Crystal Palace on Sunday, looking to bounce back to winning ways after being knocked out of the UEFA Europa League by Bayer Leverkusen, while righting the wrongs of a below-par performance against Fulham last weekend.
Disappointment at London Stadium on Thursday evening marked the end of another lengthy European run by the Hammers, as they narrowly came up short against an elite opponent at the quarter-final stage.
Having played 33 Premier League matches throughout a congested schedule, only five games remain as the race for European football heats up. David Moyes’ men will be under no illusions of the importance of the Selhurst Park clash as they search for a fourth consecutive season of continental competition.
The sides played out a 1-1 draw at London Stadium in the reverse fixture in December, as Odsonne Édouard’s second half finish salvaged a point for the visitors after Mohammed Kudus opened the scoring.
Oliver Glasner’s charges all but secured their Premier League status for 2024/25 last time out, ending a five-game winless in scintillating fashion, as they stunned title-challenging Liverpool with a 1-0 victory at Anfield.
Tickets…
West Ham fans are advised that the Club’s allocation of 2,687 tickets have sold out.
The first 90 per cent of tickets sold out to Bondholders and Season Ticket Holders with 45+ Loyalty Points. The remaining ten per cent (268 tickets) were then made available by a ballot process to Season Ticket Holders who had yet to purchase for this fixture. The ballot closed at 12pm on Tuesday 2 April.
Travel…
South London is a nightmare to drive around and parking in the vicinity of Selhurst Park is also extremely limited, so let the train take the strain.
The nearest stations are Selhurst, Thornton Heath or Norwood Junction, all of which are served by London Victoria services and are within 10-15 minutes’ walk of the ground. Both Thornton Heath and Norwood Junction are also served by trains from London Bridge.
London Overground services, which interchange with London Underground Jubilee line services at Canada Water and Elizabeth, District and Hammersmith and City line services at Whitechapel, also serve Norwood Junction.
How To Follow…
Sunday's 3pm kick-off will NOT be broadcast live in the UK, but will be shown across the world by the Premier League’s international broadcast partners.
If you live outside the UK, click HERE for details of Premier League listings in your territory.
You can follow the action via our live blog on whufc.com and our app, and across our social media channels. We will also have highlights and exclusive reaction for you after the final whistle on our website and social media.
Live audio commentary will be available in the UK on BBC Radio London, and worldwide on our official website and app.
Team News…
David Moyes was given a huge boost with the return of Jarrod Bowen for West Ham United's quarter-final tie against Bayer Leverkusen - and the 27-year-old could be involved again on Sunday.
The Hammers will also welcome back Brazilian Lucas Paquetá and Italy international Emerson, who missed Thursday's clash through suspension.
Nayef Aguerd limped off during the first half of the Europa League contest and will be assessed over the weekend alongside Dinos Mavropanos, Kalvin Phillips and Alphonse Areola.
Oliver Glasner was dealing with a lot of injuries ahead of their win at Liverpool last weekend, with Marc Guéhi, Cheick Doucouré, Sam Johnstone, Rob Holding, Matheus Franca, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi and Chris Richards all missing out.
However, a return to the starting XI for Michael Olise proved to be a timely boost for the Eagles, as he started his first game since January, while Jairo Riedewald also made his first appearance in three months from the substitutes bench.
Opposition…
The unveiling of Schärding-born Oliver Glasner as head coach in February 2024 meant Crystal Palace joined an ever-growing list of top-flight teams to look to the continent for their next appointment.
Palace’s future changed in 90 minutes. Two announcements, separated by the length of a football match. Roy Hodgson, the oldest manager in Premier League history, stood down, while Glasner took over.
Undoubtedly, there was an element of risk in the appointment, with the Eagles parting company with Hodgson in order to bring in the Austrian, but after just two months we are already beginning to see the differences.
In a season where managers from overseas have benefited the likes of Bournemouth and Aston Villa and Brighton, it looks as if an ambitious step into the unknown for Palace is seemingly paying dividends.
When Glasner took over in south London, Crystal Palace were embroiled in a relegation battle after just three wins in 19 matches across all competitions. Now, after handing Liverpool a first home defeat since October 2022 last weekend, their spot in next season’s Premier League is all but secure.
Prior to his arrival in the capital, Glasner made his name in charge of at LASK as both Director of Sport and Head Coach. He was an instant success, winning promotion to the first division at the first attempt, before finishing fourth in the top-flight to take them to their first European campaign since 2000.
Glasner was soon poached by Germans VfL Wolfsburg in 2021, and repeated his European success at the German club, finishing seventh and qualifying for the Europa League during his first season, before making it to the Champions League the next season, in turn earning the third-highest points total in the club’s history.
A move to Eintracht Frankfurt saw Glasner earn European glory in 2022, one of the finest seasons in the club’s history. After defeating Barcelona in the quarter-finals, then West Ham United in the semi-finals, Frankfurt beat Rangers to on penalties to lift the trophy.
Only eight clubs have been in the Premier League longer than Crystal Palace.
Since the Eagles flew into the top-flight via the Play-Offs in 2013, they have finished in the top half just once and are yet to reach 50 points in a single season and, while that looks to continue this season, there is every reason to be optimistic that one of the Premier League’s longest-serving clubs can better that next term.
Previous Meetings…
All of West Ham and Crystal Palace’s last 21 meetings have come in the Premier League, ever since the Irons’ return to the top-flight via the Play-offs in the 2011/12 season.
The Hammers boast a good run of form when visiting south London, having lost only three out their last ten fixtures at Selhurst Park.
The last away win against Palace for the Irons came on New Year's Day 2022 when Michail Antonio’s strike, followed by Manuel Lanzini’s brace, earned a frantic 3-2 win despite a spirited second half comeback by the Eagles. Enjoy the highlights from that game in the video player above.
Match Officials…
Referee: Graham Scott
Assistant Referees: James Mainwaring and Sam Lewis
Fourth Official: James Bell
VAR: Paul Tierney
Assistant VAR: Eddie Smart
West Ham return to Premier League action three days after the Leverkusen clash, with Graham Scott confirmed as the referee for that game.
The 55-year-old from Oxford has been part of the Select Group of Referees since 2015, having taken up refereeing in the lower leagues in 1997 after calling time on his playing career aged 27 due to a back injury.
Scott has taken charge of 15 games involving the Irons so far, beginning with a first-round EFL Cup clash at home to Aldershot Town in August 2011, and most recently during the 1-1 FA Cup draw against Bristol City in January 2024.
He has been the fourth official at three West Ham fixtures during 2023/24, the last of which saw David Moyes’ men battle to a 2-2 draw against Burnley at London Stadium in March.
For more information about the officials, click HERE.
