DeAndre Yedlin has lost his place in the starting line-up in recent games but he should be called upon to handle the threat posed by Wilfried Zaha this weekend.
On the chalkboard
Yedlin has made only seven league appearances this term but appeared to be finding a bit of form prior to a knock which ruled him out of the match against Manchester City.
The USA international had struck his first goal of the season just a couple of weeks earlier but he hasn’t featured in the previous four matches, three due to injury – and could struggle to get back into the side with Javier Manquillo now seemingly in favour.
Steve Bruce preferred the Spaniard against Burnley despite his defensive inferiority – managing 1.5 tackles per game compared to Yedlin’s 1.7 for example – though he showed his crossing skill to assist Allan Saint-Maximin against Sheffield United, an attribute Yedlin lacks with just 0.6 successful crosses per match.
Manquillo is also less erratic than his right-back counterpart. Yedlin made a foolish decision to push Jack Grealish for seemingly no reason against Aston Villa, the home side scoring the resulting free kick on their way to a comfortable 2-0 victory.
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Bruce’s preference for Manquillo against Burnley made sense but against Crystal Palace, a different threat will be posed and he must pick his team with a focus on countering that danger.
Pace and agility
Wilfried Zaha is no doubt the Eagles’ biggest threat coming into this match, and he has played himself into good form recently as well. He scored against Liverpool a few weeks ago and followed that up with another goal against Brighton on Monday.
That should be of concern to Bruce, as he’s now carrying a goal threat to add to his ability to create dangerous situations by taking players on. 4.5 successful dribbles per game, as per WhoScored, shows that he loves to beat a man and drive into the box.
It’s vital Bruce nullifies that as much as possible, which is where Yedlin comes in.
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Not only does the 26-year-old have the pace and agility to keep up with Zaha, but he also has 1.7 tackles per game this term, while being dribbled past just 0.9 times per game, according to WhoScored.
That means he should prove a tough customer for the Palace winger, who for all his tricks and flair has been dispossessed an average of four times per match – clearly he can be subdued if approached in the right manner.
Yedlin’s energy and pace going the other way down the right flank could also force Zaha to fulfil a more defensive role, and if he is busy being contained in that department then he will have fewer chances to display his attacking attributes.
It’s time for Yedlin to be recalled in a bid to nullify Crystal Palace’s biggest threat.
Meanwhile, Steve Bruce also has a big call to make in regard to Miguel Almiron, who has a 50/50 chance of playing, which means there is a risk of aggravating his injury if he takes to the pitch.
