System Versus Stardust
It's time to face Oliver Glasner's super team.
Remember when Liverpool claimed the Premier League title against Tottenham Hotspur in April? Of course you do. Well, two weeks before that date, Crystal Palace suffered a heavy 5-0 defeat against Newcastle United on Tyneside.
They haven’t lost since. Indeed, the Eagles are unbeaten in 17 matches across all competitions to be precise. And this weekend, they’re scheduled to host the Reds.
Previews are kinda rare on this Substack, but this matchup is a cool one to think about. Unstoppable force meets immovable object vibes. System versus stardust.
Palace are really interesting right now. A functional team with an established system, a core group of players, a clear identity and a manager who has been at the helm for 18 months, which is pretty long in this game.
Everybody at Selhurst Park knows what to do. Glasner loves his 3-4-2-1 formation, and so do his players. It’s all very sensible, with strengths emphasised and weaknesses masked. Tactics 101.
Daniel Muñoz is a key cog. The right wing-back just doesn’t stop. He’s probably running somewhere as I type these words. Loves to get forward, delivers with end product.
Glasner allows him to advance a lot, with Tyrick Mitchell on the opposite side likely to be glued to Mohamed Salah’s hip on Saturday afternoon. The whole dynamic is kinda ideal for facing Liverpool.
Up front, Jean-Philippe Mateta is capable of occupying an entire defensive line on his own. He’s the same height as Virgil van Dijk, and he’s quick across the ground, too, with midfielder Adam Wharton feeding him with plenty of through balls.
Ismaïla Sarr will be a big miss for the Eagles, but Daichi Kamada and Yeremy Pino will offer support to Mateta as a pair of quasi-tens who rarely press opposition wide players. Instead, their aim is to keep their team’s spine in tact.
When an opposition wide player has the ball unattended, one of Muñoz or Mitchell usually closes him down, with each Palace defender then shuffling over as a means of forming a temporary back four. Watch the clip below and follow the defensive line carefully once the latter vacates his position.
It’s nice. There’s lots to like. But the good news from a Liverpool perspective is Arne Slot should know exactly what to expect here.
