AFC Bournemouth vs. Crystal Palace 12/31/22 EPL Soccer Picks, Predictions, Odds

AFC Bournemouth and Crystal Palace face off on Saturday in an English Premier League showdown at Vitality Stadium. When these two teams faced off in 2020, the two teams played to a 0-0 draw. 

AFC Bournemouth currently sits in 14th place in the standings having picked up 16 points. In the last game, AFC Bournemouth’s offense really struggled, failing to find the back of the net, and they lost 2-0. Bournemouth had 39 percent of the possession and four shots on target. AFC Bournemouth played with five defensive backs in the last game, but it didn’t work well and it’s expected they will go back to four here. Neto, Ryan Fredericks, Junior Stanislas, Marcus Tavernier and David Brooks are all still dealing with injuries and they won’t be able to go in this game. 

On the other side of this matchup is Crystal Palace who sits in 11th place in the standings having picked up 19 points. In the last game against Fulham, Crystal Palace looked awful. Crystal Palace gave up three goals, and the offense didn’t get on the board. Tyrik Mitchell picked up a red card in the 34th minute and James Tomkins picked up a red in the 57th minute. Both players are going to be suspended for this game. Marc Guehi was suspended for the last game but he will be back here. Odsonne Edouard could move back into the starting lineup here in this game. 

The suspensions for Crystal Palace are a big problem and I think that is actually going to be the difference in this game. Crystal Palace failed to score in the last game, and they won’t be getting on the board in this game. Look for AFC Bournemouth to score at least a goal and they will secure the victory. The under 2.5 goals is also a play that I really like.