Premier League Preview: Crystal Palace

Last Season: 11th

Pre-Season Prediction: 12th - Another impressive season from Palace should see them stay well clear of the drop. Unlikely to suffer second season syndrome with Pulis at the helm.

Crystal Palace fans are probably still on the come down from what was a quite extraordinary first season back in the Premier League. Almost everybody had tipped Palace to tumble straight back into the Championship but they defied everyone after Tony Pulis masterminded an astonishing recovery following his appointment in November. In fact, the five wins on the bounce from March to April almost saw the Eagles soar into the top half, eventually finishing a brilliant 11th.

One of the major criticisms of Palace last season was their summer spending spree, bringing in 14 players during the off-season but failing to gel the squad. This season, Pulis has been keen to ensure the club do not replicate these mistakes, making just three signings to date; Chris Kettings from Blackpool, Frazier Campbell from Cardiff and Brede Hangeland from Fulham. Palace have bought well, raiding clubs in trouble to secure two free transfers and Campbell for just £900,000, an astonishingly low figure considering the current market for English players.

Palace have let a number of players go during this transfer window, carefully thinning their squad after their binge-buying last year. That said, the release of both Jonathan Parr and Dean Moxey means that a new left back has to be high on the agenda of Tony Pulis. The signing of Kettings indicates a movement towards youth, but some more talented youngsters should be a priority as eleven of the squad are aged 30-or-over. Otherwise, the squad has remained largely in tact and it has hard to criticise elsewhere after their escapades last season, although some more proven defenders could be a possibility.

Pre-season fixtures has seen little experimentation, with Pulis opting to play his star-players to figure out who his starting eleven are in time for the new season. The highlight was unquestionably a 13-1 drubbing of Austrian amateur side Grazer (although Pulis will have been devastated to have conceded a goal). It was not all plain sailing though and a final friendly loss to the Championship's newly promoted side Brentford will keep their feet firmly on the ground as they prepare for an opening day trip to the Emirates.

After the jubilation of last season, Palace fans may have to enjoy the safety of mid-table mediocrity for a while longer. Pulis is a proven mid-table expert and Palace fans can expect to be joining the likes of Swansea and Stoke in the higher echelons of the bottom half of the table. By no means should we be expecting stunning football at Selhurst Park, but we know we will have a solid unit with a lot of passion, alongside one of the noisiest, if not the noisiest fan bases in the League. Another solid season from the Eagles.

Key Man: Jason Puncheon - Puncheon has only been with Palace for a year after a loan spell followed by a permanent signing in January but has cemented himself as one of the key members of the squad. Operating on the right side of midfield, Puncheon has an ability to cut inside and use his much stronger left-foot. His prowess from midfield ended with him being the clubs joint highest goalscorer in the league, alongside Dwight Gayle. If Puncheon can add a few more assists to his game  then he will become even more dangerous and a fantasy league managers dream.

One to Watch: Glenn Murray - Murray endured an extremely difficult first season in the Premier League after a serious knee injury kept him out until February. With so little playing time it is no surprise that the 30-year-old struggled to adapt to life in the top flight. One thing we can say though is that Murray knows where the goal is - 30 Championship goals the year before if you had any doubt - and if he is allowed a run in the side do not be surprised if he starts scoring freely. To get into the starting eleven though he will need to fight off stiff competition from the likes of Gayle, Chamakh and, of course, our next man.

Best Summer Signing: Fraizer Campbell - In amongst a trio of careful summer signings comes a striker who has found glimpses of form over the last couple of seasons. Campbell has always been a player who has promised much and delivered in flashes but couldn't quite string together a season of solid performances. The question will be how much he will thrive at the front of a team who realistically do not provide a lot of service to their strikers. Competing against the other three strikers will be a struggle but Pulis should manage to get the best out of him.

Sports Ladder (14th-20th April)

UP - Gareth Bale - How do you prove to an unconvinced fan base that you are good enough for your team? Well scoring an outstanding winner in a cup final will certainly go some way towards proving it. That is precisely what the Welsh wizard did this week, as he slaughtered Marc Bartra for pace, running from the half-way line to the goal in seven seconds before tucking underneath the Barcelona keeper to secure the Copa Del Rey for Real Madrid. Success for the Brit abroad.

UP - Jazz Carlin - An excellent week for Welsh swimmer Jazz Carlin who smashed her welsh record with a time of eight minutes 18.36 seconds in the 800 meters freestyle. As well as setting a new national record, Carlin also set the fastest time in the World this year in her discipline as she heads towards the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. With two medals already under her belt, the youngster will be looking to make it three this year.
 
UP - Crystal Palace - Go on then. Who honestly predicted that Palace would avoid relegation this year? Who thought they would be thirteen points clear of relegation with three games to go? Oh you did did you? Well then you're a liar. What an incredible job Tony Pulis has done since arriving at Selhurst Park. Not only has he steadied the ship but he has created a team that can get the ball down and play. With five victories on the bounce can they finish in the top half?
 
UP - Charlotte Dujardin - What a fantastic weekend the double Olympic champion has had. The equestrian star opened up with a record breaking Grand Prix victory on Saturday, beating her own previous record of 85.942% with a 87.129% riding on her horse Valegro. The Brit then followed this up with another victory in the World Cup freestyle with an exceptional 92.179% to claim her second gold medal of the weekend. Now that's a productive bank holiday.

UP - Liam Phillips - Another marvellous double victory but this time on a BMX instead of a horse, with Britain Liam Phillips sweeping up both the Supercross and the time trial at the season's first BMX World Series. Phillips continued from where he left off last year when he was crowned World Champion in New Zealand. It was a strong week for British riders in general as both Kyle Evans and Charlotte Green finished inside the top five as well.

DOWN - Pablo Larrazabal - I've seen some bizarre stories in my short lifetime but this really is up there. Poor Pablo Larrazabal had to leap into a lake in the second round of this weeks Malaysian Open after being attacked by a storm of hornets. The Spaniard described it as "the scariest moment of his career" and was only able to continue after injections and medical examinations which said he was in a fit state to carry on. Never has a golfer been so happy to be in the water hazard.

DOWN - Chelsea - Is that Mourinho's title challenge done? Not for definite, but this week could prove to be a major blow over the next few weeks. A 2-1 loss to Sunderland could be the final nail in the coffin for Chelsea's title challenge as Liverpool's eleven game winning run shows no signs of ending. And with an important mid week Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid, could the season get even worse for the Special One?

DOWN - Daniel Ricciardo - A mixed week for Daniel Ricciardo. Disappointingly for him the appeal against his second place disqualification in Australia was declined so he will lose his maiden podium at his home Grand Prix. However, he did once again out-qualify his team mate Sebastien Vettel and also beat him in this weekends Chinese GP. This left the current world champion notably rattled. Has Ricciardo made a foolish enemy of his team mate?

DOWN - David Moyes - Is the Chosen One about to become the Fired One? Sunday's 2-0 defeat to Moyes' former club Everton at the weekend may well be the final straw as strong rumours circulated on Monday that the end is nigh for the Scotsman. With suggestions that dressing room confidence is low after reports of Danny Welbeck wanting out it looks like there is no way back now. Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement wish looks to be falling flat.

DOWN - Rafael Nadal - It was last year we began to talk about Roger Federer's possible retirement. Andy Murray decline has set in since his Wimbledon victory and now Rafael Nadal looks to be struggling. The dominance of the top four is well and truly splintered. Nadal failed to reach the Monte Carlo Masters final for the first time since 2004 and alongside his Australian Open final loss and also his Indian Wells defeat this year, could it be that another is about to fall in this tennis shake-up?

Premier League Preview: Crystal Palace

Three years ago Ian Holloway got relegated with a Blackpool side he took into the Premiership through the Play-offs. This year he will be hoping not to replicate that feat with Crystal Palace, but he facing a daunting task in front of him.

The bookmakers favourites to go down, Palace's transfer activity has hardly showered them in glory. With no marquee signing to boast about and few players with Premier League experience it is no surprise that they are being viewed as relegation certainties. Palace fans will undoubtedly be unhappy with the way summer transactions have been conducted considering Palace pulled in £15 million for starlet Wilfried Zaha.

Despite a successful but unchallenging pre-season, it's going to be a long, hard, slog of a season for Palace and some major activity is needed in the transfer market before the 2 September deadline. The sole reasons for Palace's promotion last season was Wilfried Zaha and Glenn Murray but with Zaha gone and Murray injured until October it's going to be a tough start to the season and sadly I see no other alternative than a one way trip back to the Championship.

Key Man: Julian Speroni - With Murray injured until October and unlikely to return instantly to form it's going to be a rocky start to the campaign and Palace will need their talisman goalkeeper Speroni to be on top form if they are to steer clear of the relegation zone. Three times a winner of Palace's Player of the Season award, Speroni will be vital to Palace's survival chances.

One to Watch: Jonathan Williams - Plenty of players to watch, including Yannick Bolasie and Mile Jedinak but young Jonathan Williams is my pick of the crop. A talented playmaker with international caps under his belt, Palace are going to be looking to him for creativity in midfield and he will certainly be a handful for opposition teams.

Best Summer Season: Dwight Gayle - Bringing youth and energy to the team Gayle will be looking to make a name for himself early whilst Murray is injured. Full of pace and strength Gayle will be a player to keep an eye on and with the veteran Kevin Phillips also at the club he has a tutor full of Premier League experience.

Last Season: 5th (Championship, Playoff Winners)

Pre-Season Prediction: 18th - Despite putting up a good fight, I see too much strength throughout the Premier League for Palace to stay up.