Match Preview: Crystal Palace vs. Man United
- James M.
- Dec 14, 2016
- 5 min read
Palace were winless in their three games against United last season
A visit to Selhurst Park rekindles some old memories about one King Cantona.
The year was 1995 when the unthinkable happened; Eric Cantona had just been dismissed for a retaliatory tackle on Palace’s defender, Richard Shaw.
The Frenchman was trudging down the tunnel after getting his matching orders when a somewhat brave Crystal Palace fan ran down the stands to shell out expletives towards Cantona.
Being a hate figure for opposition fans due to his brilliant play, King Cantona knew that the winding up from the opposing fans and players was just another way of appreciating his talents, only that they felt envy for not having him play for them.
It is then alleged by countless witnesses that Matthew Simmons (the Crystal Palace fan) who was abusing Cantona got bolder with his antics to a point that he described Cantona’s mum using unprintable words.
Cantona was banned for 9 months, fined £20,000 and given 120 hours of community service
That was all that was needed to ignite Cantona’s wrath – anyone else would have done the same anyway.
Before he could even utter the next abuse, Simmons found himself mid-air after a successful kung-fu kick launched from Cantona’s boots – Simmons chest had connected well with Cantona’s boot and there he was reaping the gains of his tirade-filled mouth!
With that, Cantona had successfully robbed off David May a place in the headlines after the English defender had scored his first goal for United.
Having some ferocious members in your teams, for instance the likes of Peter Schmeichel (Big Dane) and Roy Keane only added to this feeling of “it’s kicking off” at the Selhurst Park.
While the ensuing court case polarized opinion, it even propelled Cantona into a mini-god status at the Old Trafford!
Cantona’s legendary status would even grow bigger during this period when he uttered the now famous quote; “When the seagulls follow the trawler, it's because they think sardines will be thrown into the sea.”
Whether the quote was directed towards the magistrate in the case or the members of the press remains debatable!
Knowing that Cantona was the perfect blend of heroism laced with some villain traits, the press recognized that the Frenchman’s utterances would skyrocket their sales through deconstruction of the intended linguistic meaning.
Acres of space were dedicated to the opinions and commentary about the real meaning of Cantona’s quote.
At this moment, we can all perfectly guess who the trawler was and what the sardines and seagull really meant.
Wilf Zaha was Sir Alex Ferguson's final signing as manager of United
While we don’t project any such occurrence of kung-fu kicks and flying punches later today when Crystal Palace welcome Manchester United at Selhurst Park, we are tempted to draw comparisons between Eric Cantona and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
You have this insatiable feeling that Ibrahimovic will one of these days offer something to think about to those opposing fans who endlessly wind him up.
Well, Ibrahimovic, that can wait for now as we really need the three points later today.
Mourinho knows that Selhurst Park is no easy ground, especially when Pardew’s lads are under pressure for under-performing in recent games.
That said, we need our best team today for the job – unnecessary changes on the lineup should only be as a result of injury and not for experimentation purposes.
Boasting some former Manchester United players in the names of Wilfried Zaha, Fraizer Campbell and Zeki Fryers, Crystal Palace will undoubtedly go for the jugular when they host us today.
This is a team that currently lies in the fifteenth position at the logs, and at a situation that invites endless flirting with the relegation spots.
Even though Crystal Palace has a fierce rivalry with both Millwall and Charlton Athletic, they will not flinch when we play them.
In reality, Palace will aim to do just enough to make the match look like a classical involving another of their foes in Brighton & Hove Albion.
They know frustrating us for a draw will be a huge miracle for them and so expect them to play the long game and to defend in numbers.
Known as a journeyman in the management circles, Alan Pardew returned to Selhurst Park after a relatively below-par stay at Tyneside with Newcastle – in fact, Pardew became more known for his penchant to sign French players at Newcastle than at chalking up wins to the dismay of Mike Ashley!
United are in buoyant mood after a win against Tottenham on Sunday.
During Pardew’s days at Tyneside, you would have easily confused Newcastle with the Clairefontaine (French national team training center).
Other than Crystal Palace and Newcastle, Pardew has also managed the likes of Southampton, Charlton Athletic, West Ham and Reading.
Crystal Palace’s tactics can at times be disastrous as evidenced by the 3-3 draw with Hull City, and the now famous 5-4 loss to Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium.
Of particular interest is Crystal Palace’s game against Swansea in which the hosts effectively came from behind to score twice in injury time.
The incredible nine-goal thriller has become a showpiece of how to effectively deal with Crystal Palace; Pardew’s men are characteristically guilty of bottling up at the final minutes.
At one time in the game, Swansea led 3-1 only for Palace to hit back in quick succession and change the score line to 3-4.
However, with minutes remaining, Fernando Llorente (an outcast at Athletic Bilbao, Tottenham and Juventus) scored twice in injury time, and in the process revealing how Palace’s defence can easily collapse under pressure.
After the departure of Yannick Bolasie to Everton, Pardew still hasn’t got the right man to do havoc on the left side of the flanks.
However, this hasn’t stopped Pardew from using the 4-2-3-1 formation to maximize the strengths of his wide men; Zaha is skillful and he can whip in crosses into the danger areas at will.
Rooney has now scored 248 goals for Manchester United in all competitions - just one behind Bobby Charlton's all-time record of 249 goals.
Even more dreadful is the fact that he can take on his man without a second thought.
Now, there lies the danger – should Zaha cause problems from the flanks, Christian Benteke is the most likely to benefit from the crosses given his aerial prowess.
With a target man of Benteke’s stature, you have to worry because the big Belgian can manhandle opposing defenders at ease and hence capitalize to make sure that the score line changes to Palace’s advantage.
Add the likes of Andros Townsend and Jason Puncheon into the mix at the heart of the midfield and you have yourself a job to do!
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