Arsenal vs Crystal Palace prediction: Gunners may squeeze through

Arsenal take on London rivals Crystal Palace in the League Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday just days before the two sides also meet in the Premier League (7:30pm, Sky Sports Main Event).

We expect the two sides that take to the field on each occasion to be quite different, but we also expect two good, close matches.

Mikel Arteta made nine changes to the side for the Gunners’ last League Cup match with Preston North End but without a trophy since 2020 and now being just three games away from a Wembley trip he could take things a bit more seriously.

Betting sites make Arsenal favourites to lift the trophy in March, at 5/2, just ahead of Liverpool at 11/4 and you can get 25/1 on Palace to win the competition for the first time.

After dropping four points from their last two games, including a 1-1 draw with Fulham, fans will want to see more from the side that have slipped to six points behind Liverpool and four off second-placed Chelsea.

Meanwhile, Palace go into the game with just one defeat in their last nine games, which is quite a turnaround after three defeats from three games against Everton, Liverpool and Nottingham Forest saw the pressure mount on manager Oliver Glasner.

Since then, they have picked up 13 points in the league, to move them up to 15th place and four points above the relegation zone.

They reached the quarter-final with a 2-1 win at Aston Villa, in the last round, when Eberechi Eze and Daichi Kamada were on target for the visitors.

The two sides last met in this competition in 1993, at the semi-final stage and it was the Gunners who came out on top, winning 5-1 on aggregate.

Two goals from Alan Smith and a penalty from Ian Wright earned George Graham’s side a 3-1 win at Selhurst Park, before Wright was on target again at Highbury, along with Andy Linighan to secure the aggregate win.

Football betting sites have the Gunners as the favourites for the tie at 4/9, with Palace at 7/1 and a draw after 90 minutes at 15/4 - although the tie will be decided on the night going straight to penalties if it ends up all square at full-time.

Arsenal should have enough to win on Wednesday, but a lot will depend on which team both managers put out. If Arteta gives fringe players such as Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus, Jorginho and Jakub Kiwior a game, then Palace, who have gone with strong sides so far, will fancy their chances.

But if we see a stronger Gunners side than we saw at Deepdale in October, when Gabriel Jesus, Ethan Nwaneri and Kai Havertz earned them a 3-0 win then they will be too strong for Palace, who last reached the semi-finals in 2011/12.

Arsenal vs Crystal Palace prediction: Arsenal to win by one goal - 11/4 Bet365

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