Brighton v Crystal Palace: The Eagles view with The Eagles Beak

Are you even a Brighton fan if you have not had a little chuckle at recent events at Crystal Palace, the ins and outs of which are about to be explained to us by The Eagles Beak?

Our friends up the road have been exposed as a bit of a one-man team by failing to score a goal in any game when Wilfried Zaha has been missing so far this season.

Last weekend, they lost 3-0 at home to Burnley. Nearly half their first team squad is out-of-contract come the end of the season and supporters’ patience is beginning to wear thin with Roy Hodgson. Somebody even hung a bedsheet outside the Palace training ground demanding better from players and manager.

On paper, this looks like the best opportunity Brighton have had for defeating Palace since the Albion won promotion to the Premier League in 2017. Graham Potter’s side are six Premier League games unbeaten, have conceded just once in that run and confidence is high at the Amex.

Seagulls versus Eagles games rarely go to plan though. Secretly, most Albion supporters are probably wondering what way we will find to cock this one up.

Jay from The Eagles Beak meanwhile is expecting the 145th Brighton v Crystal Palace match to end in a draw. Alongside his prediction, he tells us why Palace are facing a defining summer, what should happen to Hodgson, and enjoys a little chuckle at Lewis Dunk’s ridiculous red card at Selhurst back in October.

Talk us through Palace’s season so far. It seems to be another one of those whereby you are too good to go down but not good enough to break into the top half?
Decent start and then turned into a very Jekyll and Hyde kind of a season. Let’s face it, the campaign is all very odd with games coming thick and fast in a condensed season and at all different times of the day, it is hard to keep up and I know fans are feeling it let alone players.

Palace fans are not happy this season as it seems another one where we have missed taking advantage of having one of our best squads since returning to the Premier League, only to falter far too often.

Having said that, had we beaten Burnley last weekend, it would have been the second best season at this stage of the season in the top division so what do we know?!

From the outside, it seems like a number of Palace fans are starting to feel Roy Hodgson’s days are numbered. Will he be moving on anytime soon?
Yes, this is true and the awful loss at home to Burnley only compounded matters. The thing with Roy is that just when fans are really starting to lose patience – and many did a while ago – we pull a few results out of the bag like we did against Wolves and Newcastle.

But it is hard to ignore some of the result which have really disappointed, not just the result but the way we are playing. No real fluidity and too many off days.

Opposition fans may wonder why when you look at the table but the club and owners have a lot to answer for as we almost stroll towards a summer when it seems clear Roy’s contract will run down along with having over 12 players’ contracts up for renewal.

With fans’ frustrations coming to a head, no clear decision on who will be in charge next season, a huge squad upheaval ahead, and some really passive performances, you can understand why fans are really pointing fingers.

I get the distinct impression that Roy will not be here next season, and personally I think it is time for a change with a major rebuild required.

There is no sense that Roy will be sacked by the club as he has done good by us, but that will be severely tested on Monday evening if the result at the Amex is not a positive one for Palace.

When Hodgson does take his leave, how do you go about replacing him? Will Palace try and appoint a manager with a very different style and philosophy again or is the Frank De Boer experiment too raw a memory?
This will be a huge moment for the club and the appointment has to be spot on. It is a worry considering the previous appointment of de Boer failed so dismally even if it was a bold decision to take that route. We just were not bold enough to stand by it at the time and Roy came in and has more than steadied the ship.

I am not so sure we will go down that route again which is why Sean Dyche is one of the front runners and in the mould of the type of managerial appointment we have made since promotion, other than de Boer of course!

Personally, I would like us to be bold again and give Steven Gerrard a route back to the Premier League having seen what he has done with Rangers.

Not sure if he could be tempted just yet though so another thought is Rafa Benitez, who did a decent job with Newcastle – and if he can manage them, why not Palace?

Having said all that, I think the direction all points towards Eddie Howe who has Premier League experience and is keen on returning to management in the top flight.

The jury is still out on him in my view but this appointment has to be right after a club record eight consecutive seasons in the Premier League. That is no mean feat, but a new era is fast approaching.

Nothing much seemed to happen for any club in January. Was such a quiet window across the board good for Palace or do you think you needed to do some business?
I do think that the pandemic has hit everyone hard, and that includes Premier League clubs. We made the surprise move for JP Mateta from Mainz in the Bundesliga in an attempt to make up for the failures of Benteke and Batshuayi in front of goal, but I was not really expecting much business at all as it will all happen in what promises to be a busy summer of comings and goings.

One Palace player who has caught the eye this season is Eberechi Eze. How impressive has he been?
Very. We needed someone of his calibre and promise with Wilfried Zaha not getting any younger. What he had shown early on in the season forced our hand into allowing him to play in a same side as Wilf.

That perhaps has been our downfall a little and leaving us more open than we have been in the past, but you have to let players like Eze flourish.

He is far from the finished article but the early signs are really good having already scored a few excellent goals already – it is just gutting we have yet to see him play in the flesh yet!

QPR fans had told us what to expect after surprisingly beating a number of other sides to his signature for what was a relatively low fee considering how he has performed so far, and they were not wrong. There is more to come from Eze, that much is for sure.

What did you make of our October meeting at Selhurst Park?
It was disappointing to concede so late on as I thought we had just done enough to edge the win. Take nothing away from you guys, you have to play right to the final whistle and we let our guard down which is ultimately why it finished Brighton 1-1 Crystal Palace.

The stupid sending off of your captain gave us a wry smile and that was a challenge that must have driven Brighton fans mad as there was just no need for it.

Other than Zaha, which Palace players should Brighton be wary of?
You have mentioned him already – Eberechi Eze. He struggled against Burnley as they bypassed the midfield for much of the game and we really failed to get him into the game, but the match at your place will allow him some space particularly on the break. That will play into our hands as he just glides with the ball at his feet and makes up ground so quickly.

Finally, what is The Eagles Beak prediction for Brighton v Crystal Palace?
It is difficult to predict this one but I am banking on your poor home record giving us a glimmer of hope and as I already mentioned, Roy does always seem to pull out a result when he is most under pressure. Having said that, I will take a draw so will go for a 1-1.

Thanks to Jay from The Eagles Beak for answering our questions ahead of Crystal Palace making the trip to Brighton. If you can stomach to follow a Palace fan on social media, then there is plenty of entertainment to be had on The Eagles Beak Twitter.