Crystal Palace are hosting Championship side Bristol City at Selhurst Park this lunchtime in a mid-season friendly as the international break continues to take place. 

Pierre Sage’s team have had just under two weeks off since their 0-0 draw with Leeds United at Elland Road, and with a testing set of fixtures coming up, this matchup allows those that missed out on international callups to keep their legs moving. 

Eleven members of Palace’s first team squad are away on international duty, but the remaining players have been given time to rest. At 12:30, Palace take on the Robins in what will prove to be a testing fixture. 

Palace’s record against Bristol City is very balanced, with both clubs scoring the exact same number of goals, 43, and almost sharing the wins perfectly too. 

Michael Skubala’s side have had a strong start to the Championship season, currently sitting eighth having won four, drawn once and lost three of their opening eight league games. 

Skubala has had success with Lincoln City before Bristol, winning League One with the Imps after amassing over 100 points. In that time, Lincoln played attractive, attacking and technical football, drawing from Skubala’s time coaching futsal. 

He has a very impressive record, winning 50% of his games across his managerial career. 

One of City’s standout players has been Rio Cardines, who joined on loan from Palace in the summer. Cardines currently leads almost every European League for assists and chances created this season, but won’t feature this afternoon as he is away on international duty with Trinidad & Tobago. 

The Robins have built an exciting squad with a blend of youth and experience, similar to the side Skubala built in Lincoln, and their standout players include the likes of George Tanner, Lorent Tolaj, Scott Twine and many more. 

Their aims for the season will likely be to reach the play offs, a feat they have fallen just short of multiple times in recent seasons, having lost in the 2024/25 play-off semi finals by a staggering 6-0 on aggregate to Sheffield United, in the season that Sunderland won promotion with a late Wembley winner. 

It feels like an age ago that Pierre Sage was being piled under pressure after the start to the season, and the performance and result at Leeds felt like a potential needle mover. 

The opportunity to get a large chunk of the playing squad onto the grass to train over the international break was a great chance to build more cohesion, and this afternoon’s game could be a strong indicator of the progress made. 

Of course, with a number of players away with their national sides, the full strength of the Palace squad available to Sage will be limited, but there is still a vast array of quality within the ranks to put in a strong performance. 

The suggestions that Palace’s new manager was under severe pressure were as surprising as they were unjust, and the hope from the club and fans will be that the upcoming run of games after the break can be used to build momentum and turn the form of the season around. 

We’ll bring you full coverage of the game live on the RoundTable!