The Premier League have this afternoon confirmed a new date for Crystal Palace’s home clash with Everton. The pair will now go head-to-head at Selhurst Park on Wednesday April 13, meaning they will play twice in Gameweek 33.
Palace will host Norwich prior to the Toffees’ visit, whilst Roberto Martinez’ men also face a trip to Watford beforehand.
Both clubs now face back-to-back double Gameweeks in 33 and 34 before being handed a blank the following weekend due to their FA Cup semi-final date.
Everton also have to play twice in Gameweek 37 (lei &sun), handing them a trio of doubles in the final seven rounds of fixtures. Although just one of those six matches across their doubles is at Goodison, investment in Romelu Lukaku is set to intensify – nine of the Belgian’s 18 league goals this season have arrived on the road. The likes of Ross Barkley and Aaron Lennon will also hold extra appeal in light of the announcement.
Interest in Palace’s prospects will also be on the up, though they then face back-to-back trips to Arsenal and United in double Gameweek 34 prior to their blank. Furthermore, the Eagles have scored just 16 times in front of their own fans – only three sides have netted less – and have lost six on the bounce at Selhurst Park.
The confirmation perhaps adds a little more weight to the idea of wildcarding in Gameweek 33 now as we look to take advantage of both clubs’ schedules. With many still holding Bench Boost and Triple Captain Chips, today’s news just made things a little more interesting.
8 years, 2 months agoI honestly think I'm still going to WC in 36, if only because my brain is aching at the idea of wildcarding in gw32 and coming up with a viable plan that navigates:
- 2 dgw weeks
- the gw35 blanks of some key dgw players (particular everton)
- balances the team enough to field a decent dgw team in 37 with the available transfers
My plan already had lukaku by gw34 - are there really any other everton players worth the anguish of everything I'd have to do to make it work?