Crystal Palace travel to Loftus Road for a EFL Cup third round clash against Championship side QPR. The Eagles have already beaten one second tier side in the competition and will be confident of getting past QPR on Tuesday.
QPR were made to work hard in the previous round as they needed penalties to see off Luton Town. Marti Cifuentes’ men had battled to a 1-1 draw in regulation time before claiming the upper hand in the shoot-out.
Despite being unbeaten in six matches, the draws have been piling up for QPR in recent weeks, having been held four times in that run. Defending appears to be a major problem as they have failed to keep a single clean sheet across all competitions this season.
Crystal Palace were rampant in the previous round as they eased to a 4-0 victory over Championship side Norwich City. Jean-Philippe Mateta netted a brace while Daichi Kamada and Ismaila Sarr were also on target.
Having begun their Premier League campaign with two straight defeats, that result appears to have sparked a resurgence with Crystal Palace. Oliver Glasner’s men are now unbeaten in three matches, although they were forced to come from two goals down for a 2-2 draw against Leicester City last weekend.
How the bookies view it: Bookies backing Palace
Crystal Palace have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 8/11 by Betfred to claim the win. A victory for QPR is priced at 100/30 while Betfred is also offering odds of 13/5 for a draw.
Head to head: Palace too strong
Crystal Palace have a 13-8 advantage with 12 draws from 33 previous matches against QPR. The Eagles have also won the last two meetings and triumphed 3-0 on their last visit to Loftus Road back in 2022.
Players to watch: Mateta to fire Palace’s attack
Mateta scored a brace in the previous round of the EFL Cup and again in the Premier League last weekend. He will be the one to watch for Crystal Palace and with Eddie Nketiah and Ismaila Sarr providing support, they could be backed to produce over 1.5 goals at 4/5 with Betfred.
QPR can also hold their own going forward and will look to Michael Frey and Alfie Lloyd to provide the spark in attack. Both men can ensure the hosts produce over 0.5 goals at 1/2 with Betfred.
Probable line-ups
Lloyd came off the bench to score for QPR last Saturday and could be set to start on Tuesday. He is likely to be joined in attack by Frey and Karamoko Dembele while James Dunne is set to feature at the back.
Crystal Palace are likely to give some of their summer signings a run-out with Sarr, Kamada and Nketiah pushing to start. Mateta should still lead the line but Eberechi Eze could be given a rest.
QPR: Nardi, Hevertton Santos, Dunne, Cook, Paal, Colback, Field, Lloyd, Madsen, Dembele, Frey
Crystal Palace: Henderson, Clyne, Lacroix, Guehi, Mitchell, Hughes, Lerma, Sarr, Kamada, Nketiah, Mateta
Anything else catch the eye?
QPR and Crystal Palace have attacking quality and both teams could be backed to score at 8/11 with Betfred. There were over 3.5 goals in Palace’s last fixture and a repeat is priced at 2/1 by Betfred, who is offering 4/5 for over 2.5 goals.
Crystal Palace scored in both halves in the previous round of the League Cup and a similar pattern is priced at 13/8 by Betfred.
This EFL Cup match between QPR and Crystal Palace will be played on Sep 17, 2024 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best QPR vs Crystal Palace prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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