Crystal Palace Saturday 15th October 2011 Watford take on Crystal Palace at Vicarage Road this coming Saturday, looking to pick up 3 points after a disappointing 4-0 defeat away at league leaders, Southampton prior to the international break. Crystal Palace, a team that has played Premiership football as recently as the 2004-2005 season, have started the season relatively well under the leadership of club hero Dougie Freedman, and have picked up 14 points from their opening 10 games, and after a few seasons which have seen the club slide towards the wrong end of the second tier of English football, coming within 90 minutes of League 1 football, entering administration, and facing liquidation – Palace fans will be content to be sitting 12th at this stage, and just 3 points outside the Top 6. Crystal Palace have picked up 4 wins, 2 draws and 4 losses so far this campaign, with 6 of their 14 points coming away from Selhurst Park. However, The Eagles have only picked up one win in their last 6 games, and go into the game on the back of a 2-2 draw with West Ham back at the start of the month. They have also progressed to the 4th round of the Carling Cup, following wins over Crawley, Wigan and Middlesbrough, and have Southampton to play in the next round. Watford have made a sluggish start to the season, with Sean Dyche’s men picking up just 2 wins and 4 draws from the first 10 games. That said, they have only been defeated twice in the league since August 16th when they lost 4-0 to West Ham. However, last time out saw Watford slide to a second defeat by that margin already this season, with the side conceding 4 to Southampton without reply, including 2 penalties. It is evident though that the side are struggling for goals, and following Andreas Weimann’s recall to Aston Villa a fortnight ago, it was announced on Tuesday that The Hornets had signed Michael Kightly on loan on a 1 month deal. He could go straight into the team on Saturday and could prove to be a very shrewd piece of business if he can help kick-start Dyche’s management career. Games between these sides usually yield goals, with just 2 goalless draws between them since the turn of the century. Watford will be hoping their strike-force find their stride on Saturday, with Marvin Sordell the only striker to have found the net this season. On balance, Palace have probably had the upper hand in recent times, and with what has developed into quite an eagerly anticipated fixture over the course of the last few seasons, Watford will be hoping they can find some of that form from the 2005/06 playoffs, which saw them dispatch their South London rivals in the Championship Playoff Semi-Finals, before going on to gain promotion to the Premier League. Recent League Form (Last 6 games): DLLLWD Darren Ambrose (Midfielder) Midfielder Ambrose has proved to be the danger-man for The Eagles since his arrival from Charlton in 2009. Having started his career at Ipswich, he went on to play for both Newcastle and Charlton as well as having another brief loan stint at Ipswich. After suffering two relegations in four seasons with Charlton, Ambrose elected to move on and search for a new club joining Charlton’s South London rivals, Palace. Upon completion of his move, he hit 12 goals in 20 games by November, earning himself the “Player of the Month” allocade. He finished the season with 20 goals, scoring the goal on the final day that would secure Palace’s safety after the club entered administration half way through the campaign. Speculation was rife that Ambrose would be on his way to QPR with Neil Warnock, however, Ambrose signed a new 3 year deal in the summer of 2010. He has claimed 31 goals and 15 assists in a Crystal Palace Shirt in 93 games, and has amassed a career total of 63 goals in 317 appearances at the age of 27. One Watford certainly need to keep close tabs on on Saturday afternoon! Watford have no fresh injury concerns going into Saturdays game. Stephen McGinn (Knee) is still out with his long-term injury, and Chris Iwelumo is said to be back to full fitness and ready to step-up to the plate. New loan signing from Wolves - Michael Kightly - looks set to go straight into the match-day squad, and Matty Whichelow is available for selection having returned from his loan at Exeter City. Having missed the game against the Saints through illness, full-back Carl ****inson should also be available for selection once more. Sean Dyche will almost certainly look to alter the side that lost 4-0 on the South Coast two weeks ago. Possible Watford Starting XI: Loach Doyley – Mariappa – Taylor – ****inson Kightly – Eustace – Hogg – Yeates Sordell – Garner Subs: Gilmartin, Mirfin, Forsyth, Deeney, Iwelumo Crystal Palace have a relatively clean bill of health at the current time, with Owen Garvan set for a return to the side. Crystal Palace starting XI vs West Ham (D 2-2): Speroni Wright – McCarthy – Gardner – Parr Ambrose – Jerdinak – Williams – Moxey Zaha – Murray Subs: Price, Tunchev, Ramage, Easter, Scannell 02/02/2011 Watford 1-1 Crystal Palace 10/11/2010 Crystal Palace 3-2 Watford 31/03/2010 Watford 1-3 Crystal Palace 28/11/2009 Crystal Palace 3-0 Watford 28/02/2009 Watford 2-0 Crystal Palace 24/01/2009 Watford 4-3 Crystal Palace Providing I get the time to do so, I will aim to get some opposition fans’ views published before the game on Saturday afternoon. Palace started off the season very brightly and as a result sit 12th in the table. Games between these two sides are always close and usually provide goals. However, in recent games, both sides seem to have struggled to find any real ‘form’, and so I can see this one being a cagey affair. Watford need to start picking up the wins somewhere though, we’re due. Watford 2-1 Crystal Palace. At The Bookies Watford Win @ 6/5 Draw @ 23/10 Crystal Palace Win @ 23/10 (Odds courtesy of www.williamhill.com) Or if you want to throw some vCash at this one, head over the vBookie prior to kick-off on Saturday afternoon and place your bets!
Nothing too concrete, just a hunch after a couple of things said to me over the past week or so. In addition, we've been actively looking for a keeper on loan, and had made an approach for Kirkland before his move to Doncaster, so I don't think Dyche is particularly impressed with Loach or Gilmartin. Bond is definitely seen as the best goalkeeper at the club by those at the top.
Seriously what has Loach done wrong this season? From the games this season he has been consistently better than last season and before you all talk about the Forest match that was a Taylor and ****inson mistake. 1-1 Draw written all over this one.
Palace will be a very hard game,they brushed Brighton aside away from home 3-1.This is not an easy 3 point game,and not a home banker
scottloach1 scott loach Nice day to take 3 points today. C all u orns there later on. Looks like Loachy will be starting.
Buaben FINALLY on the bench and Kightly starts, not that that will matter, as it's Yeates that's been dropped for him and not Forsyth, meaning Kightly will have to spend the whole game watching us punt it up to Forsyth and probably won't touch the ball.
Nath, you make it sound like Forsyths fault that its getting pumped up to him. The only thing his done wrong in that aspect is be good in the air
I have to be honest, from what I've seen of him I don't particularly like him as a player, he can't beat a man and has no pace which couldn't get much worse when you're meant to be a winger, but I do agree it's not necessarily his fault that we do just hoof it long to him so often, the blame for that lays with Dyche, Forsyth can't help being a lamp post.
WATFORD: Loach; Doyley, Mariappa, Taylor, ****inson; Kightly, Eustace (c), Hogg, Forsyth; Sordell, Garner. Subs: Gilmartin (gk), Yeates, Iwelumo, Buaben, Mirfin. CRYSTAL PALACE: Speroni; Clyne, McCarthy (c), Ramage, Wright; Dikgacoi, Parr, Tunchev, Zaha; Murray, Scannell. Subs: Price (GK), Gardner, Ambrose, Jedinak, Easter. Shoutbox coming up in 2 minutes.
Reaction? Just how much more shyte do we have to put up with? Honestly, this is the most turgid, constipated, flat, uninspired, headless, witless, regressive and depressing Watford side I've ever experienced.
It really is tiring supporting such a cr@p team. I think it reflects badly on me as a person. Fed up.
No direction, no skill, no cohesion, no plan A or B and we're basically f**ked unless Dyche either leaves or he changes his 'ethos' (which from what i've heard, won't happen). I can't believe there are people that think there are 3 teams worse than us! Hahaha. Laughable. How are we going to win games when we can't do the basics properly!? Surely you have to start by having a game plan!? We don't have one. If we do it's horrendous. We give the ball away all the time, we don't look like scoring goals, we play with no cohesion and direction and the players look like they don't give a sh*t! I won't be going to see another game until this bell-end either changes his 'ethos' or gets sacked! I'm not wasting my time or money on watching sunday morning football!
It's not quite as bad as life under Perryman, but its getting there. It's now on a par with Aidys last 12 months and isn't going to get any better. Dyche seems like a nice bloke, clearly knows what should be done, but can't impliment his plan or get the players to exicute his plan. Sorry Sean, the clock has ticked.
This is also coming from one of the most patient sensible people on the board. I think that sums it up.
Bubbs, is there any chance, from what you've heard, that anyone in the Club has a shred of common sense and will boot Dyche soon?
Time for Bassini to show some balls & ditch Dyche now before it's too late. Plenty of experienced managers out there at the moment which is what we're crying out for.
I dont think anyone can defend that team that i just saw play, I'm not sure why Forsyth is still starting or even playing at all, oh i forgot he is an aerial threat, haha what a poor excuse that is, at what point today was he a threat in the air? Or a threat at all, but I cant just single him out, the whole team played like a joke today. Sordell also was his greedy self not passing when we couldve had a scoring opportunity!Palace had way too much time on the ball today giving them time to pick out exactly what they wanted to do. From the angle I saw the first goal from its difficult to understand how it even went in as it looked like such a tight angle to score from. The defence were all over the place today, what a shambles our team is, we will do well to stay up.
