Preview: Arsenal must take advantage of instability
Ian Holloway did a fine job guiding Crystal Palace to the English top flight, but after a poor start to the campaign, both parties have gone their separate ways. A heavy defeat at home against Fulham was the final straw, and now the Eagles will prepare to take on league leaders Arsenal.
Palace has only managed one victory from their eight EPL matches, but they enter Saturday's match on a five match losing streak.
From their four home matches this season, they have conceded eight goals, while only scoring four. And mind you, three of those goals came in one match, when they earned a 3-1 victory over Sunderland.
Since their opening day 0-1 defeat against Tottenham, and their only victory, Holloway's squad had conceded at least two goals in their other six matches. Conceding so often could be a cause for concern with Arsenal making a quick visit from across London.
The Gunners suffered a 1-2 defeat mid-week in their third UEFA Champions League match against Borussia Dortmund. But despite the result, they will be hungry to get back on track against a Crystal Palace side that has not defeated Arsenal at home since November 1979.
With their defeat on Tuesday night, Arsenal saw their 12 match win streak come to an end, but they should have a got shot at getting back in the win column on Saturday.
Crystal Palace enters the match with no serious injury concerns, while Arsene Wenger is hopeful that Jack Wilshere can recover from an ankle knock picked up against Dortmund. A likely return to the squad will be Mathieu Flamini, who came off last weekend against Norwich, with a concussion.
Having Flamini back in the squad will give the Gunners that extra fighting spirit on and off the ball, which some would say they missed mid-week. But realistically speaking, will the Gunners need to put in a top performance to get past the hosts?
In all fairness, anything is possible, but the visitors have all the pressure on them. The Eagles are facing no pressure, considering they do not have a manager, and given their current form, one would expect them to lose by more than one goal.
While Palace tries to sort things out at the back going up against Olivier Giroud and his many other offensive options, the hosts will be hoping Chamakh can offer them some offense.
The former Arsenal striker will line-up against his former squad for the first time, as he will look to guide his club to a second victory.
An early goal for the visitors could really make matters worst for Palace, as they would run the risk of a lot of players losing any of their remaining confidence.
Where to watch the match - live stream, start time, TV channels, live scores
Watch Arsenal vs Crystal Palace live on Saturday, October 26, 2013:
In Canada at 7:45 ET on: Sportsnet Ontario / East / West / Pacific, TalkSport Radio, Sportsnet World Online
In the UK at 12:45 BST on: Arsenal Player, BBC Radio 5 Live, BT Sport 1
In the USA at 7:45 ET on: DirecTV, NBC Sports Network, SiriusXM FC, NBC Sports Live Extra, TalkSport Radio
If you are outside of these viewing areas and watch to follow this match live, be sure to visit the Crystal Palace vs Arsenal match page for full TV listings.
