No Lax Attitude at the Palace

The BBC’s first ever Premier League match is a trip to the seaside where Bournemouth are in much greater need of the points. They restart in the relegation zone, having taken just 11 points from their last 18 league games. You don’t need me to tell you, that’s relegation form.

Given that home advantage doesn’t really exist at the moment, it’s a curiosity then that Palace come in as 2/1 underdogs with Bet365. Yes it was a long time ago, but three consecutive victories prior to the break must be better than Bournemouth’s four winless games (L3 D1).

 
The assumption must be that the Eagles will take it easy with safety looking assured. But that hasn’t been the style for Palace in recent years, or for Roy Hodgson more generally.