Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest Prediction: Sarr to strike at Selhurst

Three defeats in their last four Premier League games have knocked Nottingham Forest out of the top five and left their Uefa Champions League dream hanging in the balance, with just four fixtures remaining. The first of those sees them travel to Selhurst Park on Monday (20:00, Sky Sports Main Event) to take on FA Cup finalists Crystal Palace, who can still achieve a top-half finish.

Read on for my Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest predictions, accompanied by the latest team news and match odds.

Team News

Chadi Riad and Cheick Doucoure (knee) are out for the rest of the season with knee injuries, while back-up goalkeeper Matt Turner is unavailable due to the terms of his loan deal from Nottingham Forest, but otherwise, Crystal Palace appear to be at full strength for the visit of Forest on Monday.

Oliver Glasner could name the same starting XI that dismantled Aston Villa 3-0 in the FA Cup semi-finals last time out, with Ismaila Sarr bagging a brace and Eberechi Eze helping himself to one at Wembley.

Football Odds

Will Hughes, Jefferson Lerma and Eddie Nketiah are options if the Austrian decides to freshen things up.

Callum Hudson-Odoi limped out of Forest's 2-0 defeat to Brentford on Thursday and is a major doubt for his side's trip to Selhurst Park with a hamstring injury.

Eric da Silva Moreira (ankle) is also set to miss out for Nuno Espirito Santo's charges.

Jota Silva, Nicolas Dominguez and Ibrahim Sangare could come into the starting XI after the manner of Thursday's loss.

Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest Odds

Palace are winless in their last four Premier League games (D2, L2), yet the Eagles are 13/10 favourites for victory on Monday, implying a 43.5% probability, while Forest, who have lost three of their last four league matches, are 23/10, or a 30.3% chance, to get their Champions League bid back on track with a win.

The corresponding fixture last season ended in a goalless draw, and another Selhurst Park stalemate between these two teams can be backed at 12/5, with a repeat of that 0-0 scoreline at 9/1.

Palace forward Jean-Philippe Mateta, who scored his 14th top-flight goal of the season last time out in the competition against Arsenal, heads the anytime market at 7/5 here, with 19-goal marksman Chris Wood (7/4) first up for the visitors.

Anytime Goalscorer - Ismaila Sarr (CRY) @ 12/5

A great season got even better for Sarr in the FA Cup semi-finals as his brace helped to down Villa at Wembley.

The 27-year-old, who joined the Eagles from Olympique Marseille last summer, has scored 11 goals for Glasner's side, seven of which have come in the Premier League.

Sarr's last strike in the competition was the winner against Ipswich Town on March 8, with the Senegal international failing to score in his last six top-flight outings.

However, he scored in the 3-0 FA Cup quarter-final victory over Fulham on March 29, and his brace against Villa should give him more confidence heading into Monday's clash.

At 12/5, there's value in backing the former Watford winger to expose a Forest defence that hasn't kept a clean sheet in their last five games across all competitions.

Player Shots On Target - Anthony Elanga (NFO) 1+ @ 6/5

Forest winger Elanga was responsible for 60% (three) of his side's five shots on target against Brentford on Thursday, with all three of his shots saved by Bees number one Mark Flekken.

Those saved efforts took the 23-year-old's shots on target per 90 minutes average in the Premier League this season up to 0.8, and with Hudson-Odoi set to miss Monday's trip to Selhurst Park, Elanga's importance to the team is heightened.

The Sweden international should start and play the majority, if not all, of Monday's game, giving him a great opportunity to at least force Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson into a save.

Elanga has scored six goals in 34 Premier League appearances (27 starts) this season, establishing himself as one of Forest's key players in attack, so 6/5 for him to register a shot on target in south London looks appealing.

Offers

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