Crystal Palace vs Leeds Predictions

• Palace have lost six of eight league games directly following a Conference League game
• The Eagles will likely focus on their second leg clash in Cyprus after opening up a gap to the bottom three
• Leeds have made strides forward on the road, scoring three goals at Newcastle before getting results at Everton, Chelsea, and Villa
• Palace have lost five of their last eight home league games

Opportunity for Leeds

Away results haven’t helped Leeds’ survival prospects this season, as Daniel Farke’s side have only won one of their first 14 trips, which was a 3-1 success at bottom club Wolves.

However, Leeds have been putting together some decent results on their travels of late. They’ve drawn their last three games on the road following a 4-3 loss at Newcastle in January. They’ve taken a point at Everton, Chelsea, and Aston Villa in that spell, so visiting a Crystal Palace side who have their focus split offers a real opportunity for Farke’s charges.

Europe is proving a distraction for Palace

Crystal Palace’s first season in Europe hasn’t proven to be a happy one, and their 0-0 draw at home to AEK Larnaca on Thursday hasn’t helped matters. Dropping into the Conference League was a blow for Palace, but they were seen as real contenders to lift the trophy. Oliver Glasner will also want to land European success before his job-hunt in the summer.

However, Palace have shown the strain to juggling multiple competitions this season. Across their last eight matches directly following a Conference League game they’ve suffered six defeats, only beating Wolves and holding Brighton to a 0-0 draw.

This is Palace’s sixth game in the last three weeks, and they were beaten 4-1 at Leeds on December during one of their busiest stretches of the campaign.

Clear priority for Palace

In the short term, Palace’s recent league wins allow them to put everything into their European campaign. The Eagles picked up key results over Wolves and Tottenham in their last three games, moving them onto 38 points. They’re closing in on safety, so it would be little surprise for Glasner to rotate ahead of their key visit to Cyprus.

Leeds don’t have the same cushion, as they’re only three points clear of the bottom three. They have a clear edge in terms of fitness here, and they’re good value given Palace’s awful record directly following European games.