Crystal Palace v Arsenal

Crystal Palace v Arsenal Preview

Monday night wraps up this weekend's action in the Premier League with another London derby between Crystal Palace and Arsenal at Selhurst Park with both teams sitting on three points apiece following opening day wins in last weekend's fixtures.

Crystal Palace registered a 1-0 win away from home at newly promoted Sheffield United at Bramall Lane to give The Eagles a flying start to this new English top flight campaign and indeed that win up in Yorkshire last week means that Monday night's hosts have now lost just twice in their last 11 league matches overall.

Following the unsuccessful appointment of former Arsenal and France midfielder, Patrick Vieira, who oversaw a miserable 13-match winless spell during his tenure at Palace, the London hosts replaced him with former manager, Roy Hodgson who returned for a second stint at Selhurst Park and he produced the desired effect immediately.

Hodgson's first game in charge was a 2-1 win against Leicester City and a further four victories followed in the shape of crucial wins against Leeds United, Southampton, West Ham and Bournemouth which helped Crystal Palace into a more respectable 11th place in the Premier League table at the end of the season.

Arsenal quickly shrugged off the disappointment of being beaten by Manchester City at the finish post at the end of last season last weekend when they got themselves off the mark with a 2-1 home win against one of last season's strugglers, Nottingham Forest.

Despite ending last season in overall solid form which saw The Gunners lose just three of their final 16 matches of the campaign, those three defeats proved to be the difference between claiming the league title and finishing runners-up, especially as one of those defeats was to their title rivals, Manchester City, in a resounding 4-1 defeat away from home at the Etihad Stadium.

Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta, will be reminding his players that they've picked up 11 wins from their last 17 matches overall in the English top flight along with losing just three of their previous 16 outings on the road as well, so The Gunners should be in confident mood ahead of Monday's short trip to Selhurst Park.

Crystal Palace v Arsenal Verdict

Crystal Palace have still only managed just three home wins from their previous 12 home games though, and this is something that Roy Hodgson will need to address in order for his side to avoid a repeat of last season's worrying slide down the table.

Arsenal have won each of the previous two meetings against Crystal Palace, recording a a 2-0 win away at Selhurst Park in their last visit back in August of last season which was followed up with a 4-1 victory at the Emirates Stadium in mid-March, so Arsenal look to hold the edge here.

Therefore, our main bet will be Arsenal win @ 1.57

Other side bets worth considering:

Arsenal win & Under 2.5 goals @ 3.60

Correct score: Arsenal 2-0 @ 7.50