Match Report
On paper the standings were lopsided — Aston Villa 4th with 65 points, Crystal Palace 15th with 45, 20 apart. The last five rounds placed Aston Villa no better than 9th for form, against 4th in the standings. Scoring rates set the scale: Crystal Palace 1.08 scored and 1.34 conceded per game, Aston Villa 1.47 and 1.29, with the league averaging 1.38.
Crystal Palace had gone 6 games without a win. Over the last five, Crystal Palace had taken 2 of 15 points to Aston Villa's 12.
Across 25 recorded meetings, Crystal Palace have 12 wins to Aston Villa's 8, with 5 draws, at 2.68 goals per meeting. Goals have risen lately: 3.6 per game across the last five meetings, against 2.68 across the full history.
Selhurst Park staged the fixture, a ground that holds 25,456. On the scoreboard, it was 0-0 at the break, and no goals arrived after the restart: 0-0 the final score.
Key stats
Possession: Crystal Palace 41% · Aston Villa 59% · Total shots: 11-15 · On target: 5-3 · Corners: 3-5