Crystal Palace vs Hull City: Two Sides Running on Empty Meet at Selhurst Park

Sunday's match at Selhurst Park is not a glamour fixture. It is two Premier League sides in serious need of points, and neither of them has been convincing enough to make you feel certain about what happens next. Crystal Palace host Hull City at 14:05, and the honest truth is that both teams have questions to answer about their basic desire to compete at this level.

Palace Are Leaking Goals at an Alarming Rate

Let's start with Crystal Palace, because their defensive record over their last five Premier League matches is genuinely unacceptable. Eleven goals conceded. Three losses. A clean sheet in just one of those five games. That is not bad luck. That is a standards problem.

Crystal Palace lost to Newcastle United 0-2 and then got torn apart by Brighton 0-5. The thing is, you can have an off day. Everyone does. But back-to-back results like that tell you something is wrong with the attitude and the shape of this side. They beat Nottingham Forest 3-1 in between, which is nice, but one win from five is not a platform to build on.

Listen, a team conceding at that rate at home is a concern. The only credit I will give them is that they picked up a point against Leeds in a goalless draw, which at least showed some defensive organisation on that occasion. But Brighton putting five past you? That does not leave you quickly.

There is also a major injury absence recorded in the data. Crystal Palace have had a player out since late August. I will not speculate on who, but a long-term absence of that nature affects your depth and your continuity. It is a real factor.

Hull Have Not Won in Five. Not Once.

Hull City arrive with zero wins from their last five Premier League matches. Zero. Three draws and two defeats. The thing is, a draw against Chelsea at 2-2 or holding Everton to 2-2 shows there is something there, some ability to compete at moments. But they have not been able to turn that into victories, and that is where accountability has to come in.

Hull have kept no clean sheets in those five matches either. Every single game has ended with them conceding. They drew 1-1 with Brentford, lost 0-1 to Fulham, lost 1-2 to Newcastle United. That is a team that works hard enough to stay in games but cannot close them out. That is a mentality issue as much as anything else.

Both teams score and concede with regularity when they meet teams of this level. Hull have seen both teams score in four of their last five. Palace have managed it in two. The basics of defending as a unit, holding a lead, seeing a game out. These are the areas where this match will be decided.

What Needs to Happen

Crystal Palace need a reaction at home. Their supporters deserve to see a team that competes for the full ninety minutes without falling apart defensively. One clean sheet in five is not good enough for a side playing in front of their own fans.

Hull need a win. Draws are not enough when you have none in the victory column. At some point, desire has to convert into three points or you are in serious trouble.

The thing is, a match between two sides low on confidence and short on wins can go either way. It can produce a scrappy, tight affair where the first goal settles it, or it can be open and chaotic. Given both defences have been poor, I would not be backing a clean sheet from either side with any great conviction.

Palace at home gives them the marginal edge. But they need to show they mean it from the first whistle. End of.