After results went largely their way on Saturday, can Crystal Palace maintain momentum against a resurgent West Ham on Monday night?
After sealing their place in the Conference League semi-finals on Thursday, Crystal Palace are now back in action in the Premier League.
They will have the advantage of seeing what others around them have done, meaning they will know when they can sit with a win over a West Ham side who are fighting for their place in the Premier League.
Regardless of the battle for Europe though, a home clash against a London side is always one Palace will want to win and this year it is no different.
Form Guide
Palace have returned from the international break with the usual vigour and energy we have become accustomed to under Oliver Glasner.
A big 3-0 win over Fiorentina in the first leg of the Conference League quarter-final put them in complete control of the tie and although they lost 2-1 in Florence, that was still more than enough to qualify.
In between those two continental clashes, Palace defeated Newcastle 2-1 to eliminate any possible doubt of being sucked into a relegation battle and to allow them to look up at the European spots for next season.
There were some videos that surfaced on social media of the Palace players celebrating in Florence, so we shall see how seriously Glasner takes the remaining league games.
For West Ham, their form has taken a significant upturn and with a 4-0 win over bottom-of-the-league Wolves, they moved themselves out of the relegation zone at the expense of Tottenham.
That is their second win in four games, and from their last possible 18, the Hammers have picked up eight points in the Premier League.
Previous Meetings
Two sides of the stature of West Ham and Crystal Palace, you would have expected would have met more times than they have.
In fact the two sides have only played each other 71 times, with West Ham taking 26 of those clashes, Palace coming out on top on 21 occasions and there have been 24 draws.
Palace have been on top in recent years in this fixture though and have won three of the last four, while at Selhurst Park, West Ham have actually won three and Palace two of the last five, in matches that have produced as many as 26 goals.
Team News
Palace are still able to boast a relatively clean bill of health, with Evann Guessand the only new injury.
His knee injury sustained against Fiorentina, sees him join the long-term list of Eddie Nketiah and Cheick Doucoure, who could be back involved sooner rather than later.
Adam Wharton and Maxence Lacroix were both injured in the first half in Florence and may miss the game as a result but neither injury is thought to be hugely serious.
Adam Wharton could miss out on the match after suffering a knock.Predicted XI
Crystal Palace (3-4-2-1): Henderson (c); Canvot, Riad, Richards; Mitchell, Hughes, Lerma, Munoz; Pino, Mateta, Johnson
Odds
Palace are very slightly the favourites, coming in at 11/8 to win, with West Ham given odds of 21/10.
A draw is 11/5.
What did Oliver Glasner say about West Ham?
“Huge credit to Nuno for what he did [since his appointment]. They were really struggling at the beginning of the season and even when he arrived, but in the last weeks they feel more consistent.
“I think honestly they maybe should have more points from their performances in the recent games they played. They only conceded a late equaliser against Manchester United at home.
“They had a great and important 4-0 win against Wolves at home in their last game. We expect them to be highly motivated and very aggressive because they're fighting against relegation.
“That's what we have to be ready for, to match their aggression and motivation. But the players showed it against Newcastle because it was the same situation. Newcastle were fresh and we had three days after a game in the Conference League.
“But we matched their intensity and motivation. If we can keep this, I think we'll also be able to win against West Ham.”