Following Sunday's 2-1 win at Fulham, Crystal Palace moved into the top four. Football writer Dan Edwards discusses how Oliver Glasner's side have dealt with their packed schedule.
It would have been entirely reasonable for Crystal Palace to struggle with the demands of their taxing schedule this season, with Thursday night matches played far and wide in Europe frequently followed up by Sunday fixtures against teams with fresher legs than themselves.
It is notoriously difficult for teams to deal with the twin challenge of midweek European football and a demanding Premier League campaign, and Palace are doing so with a squad that has less depth than most facing that same test – and all of this in their first-ever season in a major European competition.
Most matches played (all comps) in 25/26
| Team | Matches |
| Crystal Palace | 24 |
|---|---|
| Liverpool, Spurs | 23 |
| Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City, Newcastle | 22 |
| Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest | 21 |
| Brentford, Brighton, Fulham | 18 |
| Burnley, Everton, Wolves | 17 |
| Bournemouth, Leeds, Sunderland, West Ham | 16 |
| Man Utd | 15 |
Most minutes by PL players (all comps) in 25/26
| Player* | Mins. played |
| Maxence Lacroix (CRY) | 2,160 |
|---|---|
| Daniel Munoz (CRY) | 2,047 |
| Marc Guehi (CRY) | 1,995 |
| Jean-Philippe Mateta (CRY) | 1,930 |
| Dominik Szoboszlai, Virgil van Dijk (LIV) | 1,890 |
| Pedro Porro (TOT) | 1,869 |
| Nikola Milenkovic (NFO) | 1,799 |
| Micky van de Ven (TOT) | 1,790 |
| Chris Richards (CRY) | 1,777 |
*Outfield players only
And yet, despite those perfectly rational excuses for any potential underperformance, Marc Guehi’s winning goal against Fulham on Sunday lifted Glasner’s side up to fourth place in the Premier League table.
Guehi the difference
It is no secret that Guehi, their captain, was on the cusp of leaving Palace to join Liverpool in the summer before the club’s hierarchy elected at the last minute to keep him at Selhurst Park.
We will never know exactly how much of a difference that move would have made to both teams’ fortunes this season, but it is abundantly clear that Palace would have been weaker without his services.
Guehi has the third-best duel success rate of any central defender in the Premier League this season (66.7 per cent), while only four central defenders have won a higher share of their aerial contests than the Palace captain (71.4 per cent).
Best PL centre-back duels stats, 25/26
| Player | Duels (100+) | Duels won | % Duel succ. |
| Virgil van Dijk (LIV) | 128 | 100 | 78.1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nordi Mukiele (SUN) | 140 | 94 | 67.1 |
| Marc Guehi (CRY) | 123 | 82 | 66.7 |
| Ibrahima Konate (LIV) | 142 | 94 | 66.2 |
| Cristian Romero (TOT) | 106 | 69 | 65.1 |
He is similarly important to their first phase of build-up, ranking fifth in the competition among his positional peers for line-breaking passes, with 129.
Today, though, not only did he hold the fort defensively and take charge in possession, but he also made the difference in the opposite box, rising highest in the 87th minute to head home Yeremy Pino’s corner.
Guehi’s attacking contribution is perhaps a part of his game that he does not receive sufficient credit for – with two goals and two assists, he has been directly involved in four league goals this season, a total exceeded at Palace by only Jean-Philippe Mateta (seven) and Daniel Munoz (five).
In Palace’s previous match on Wednesday against Burnley, Guehi took on the role of creator, with a wonderful cross to find Munoz at the back post for the game’s only goal.
Munoz was absent for today’s victory against Fulham due to swelling in his knee, and while Guehi was ultimately the matchwinner, the three points would not have been possible without multiple players stepping up in the absence of one of their senior players.
Wharton impresses
Adam Wharton was typically smooth, and his forward-thinking ethos paid dividends when locating Eddie Nketiah with a fizzed pass for Palace’s opening goal.
Watch: Wharton's best bits v Fulham
Another classy performance from Adam Wharton for @CPFC 🤌 pic.twitter.com/40qwyVU2k9
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 7, 2025
The England international was a handful off the ball, too, with 14 total defensive contributions in addition to his assist.
His defensive ability has previously been one of few question marks as to his viability at the very highest level, but he more than ticked that box on Sunday.
Nketiah’s goal is a huge fillip for Glasner – Palace will continue to be without Ismaila Sarr given the winger's ankle injury and subsequent involvement at the Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal if he returns to full fitness in time, while Mateta is also in dire need of some rest.
Former Arsenal forward Nketiah can step up in either role.
"It makes me proud because the team did not want to defend the draw, we wanted to win and that's why we got it in the end,” Glasner told Sky Sports after the win.
“Small margins like in every single Premier League game, but we are always able to score goals and defend well. I could mention many players, but it was a huge team effort and that makes me very proud. That's why we are where we are."
Palace won with a possession figure of 37 per cent today, making it the eighth time in 2025 that they have won a Premier League game with less than 40 per cent possession – the most of any side.
That bodes well for the visit of second-placed Manchester City to Selhurst Park next Sunday, while Glasner also has the added benefit of a match against Shelbourne in the UEFA Conference League, a tie that allows them greater opportunity for rotation than City’s testing trip to Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League.