Subscribe to our Newsletter

Get a monthly digest of the latest Football GAP insights.

About Us

We believe the individual impact of football players cannot be measured by vanity metrics like goals, passes, tackles won or possession. Real team players influence besides their own metrics especially their team members, their opponents and as a final output the game result directly and indirectly. This is what Football GAP is about.

© 2025 Football Gap. All rights reserved.

PrivacyTermsContact

Manchester City vs Crystal Palace - Predictions, Stats & Odds

Premier League Statistics, AI predictions, (Expected) Lineups and Insights for Gameweek 31

Premier League - Gameweek 31

Saturday, 21 Mar 2026 • 00:00

Etihad Stadium (Etihad Campus, Manchester)

Manchester City

- : -

Crystal Palace

AI Match Prediction

Based on Game Advantage Percentage from every player, regarding recent individual as well as team form, we provide you with our top-notch AI predictions.
67%
22%
11%
Win Manchester City
Draw
Win Crystal Palace

Predicted Lineups

Manchester City

PosPlayer
GK
Gianluigi Donnarumma
DEF
Rayan Aït-Nouri
DEF
Marc Guéhi
DEF
Ruben Dias
MID
Bernardo Silva
MID
Rodri
MID
Antoine Semenyo
MID
Matheus Nunes
MID
Nico O'Reilly
FWD
Erling Haaland
FWD
Omar Marmoush

Crystal Palace

PosPlayer
GK
Dean Henderson
DEF
Tyrick Mitchell
DEF
Chris Richards
DEF
Jaydee Canvot
DEF
Maxence Lacroix
MID
Adam Wharton
MID
Daichi Kamada
MID
Jefferson Lerma
FWD
Ismaïla Sarr
FWD
Jørgen Strand Larsen
FWD
Evann Guessand
Difference Maker Star: Top 3 players of their team

Preview for the game Manchester City vs Crystal Palace

Manchester City come into this Gameweek 31 clash at the Etihad in strong league form, taking 11 points from their last five Premier League matches thanks to a run of three wins and two draws. Crystal Palace have been more up and down with 7 points over the same span, alternating wins and losses around a single draw. Our Plus Minus model heavily favours the hosts, assigning City a 67% chance of victory, with the draw at 22% and Palace given an 11% likelihood of an upset. The recent head-to-head data underlines City’s dominance in this fixture. They won 3-0 away at Palace on 14 December 2025 and 5-2 at the Etihad in April 2025, while also taking a 4-2 victory at Selhurst Park in April 2024. Palace’s best result in this run was a 2-2 home draw in December 2024. With Erling Haaland (GAP +4.6%) leading the line and Kevin De Bruyne (GAP +8.0%) supplying from midfield, City’s attacking ceiling remains high, especially against a Palace defence that has conceded heavily in several of these recent meetings. For the visitors, the pace and direct threat of Ismaïla Sarr (GAP +4.0%) and the midfield work of Jefferson Lerma (GAP +1.1%) will be key if they are to turn their intermittent form into a consistent performance away from home. Injuries and availability Manchester City remain without Joško Gvardiol, who is sidelined with a tibial fracture in his right leg and is expected to be out for an extended period, even if there is some hope he could feature again before the end of the season. Rico Lewis is dealing with an ankle injury and, having been out since late February, is doubtful for this match with a possible return date listed around mid-April. Crystal Palace are still missing Cheick Oumar Doucoure, who has a long-term knee injury and has been ruled out since January, with no clear return date. Daniel Muñoz is recovering from a shoulder problem picked up against Tottenham and is being monitored, making him a doubt here. Eddie Nketiah is also unavailable due to a hamstring injury, with his return targeted for April after a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

League Table before the game

#TeamPWDLGFGAGDPtsForm
2Manchester City3018756028+3261
W
W
W
D
D
14Crystal Palace30109113335-239
L
W
L
W
D

Last Games

Manchester City

@West Ham United
1 - 1
vsNottingham Forest
2 - 2
@Leeds United
1 - 0
vsNewcastle United
2 - 1
vsFulham
3 - 0

Crystal Palace

vsLeeds United
0 - 0
@Tottenham Hotspur
3 - 1
@Manchester United
1 - 2
vsWolverhampton Wanderers
1 - 0
vsBurnley
2 - 3

Head-to-Head

21 Mar 2026
Manchester City - Crystal Palace
21 Mar 2026Manchester City
-
Crystal Palace
14 Dec 2025
Crystal Palace0 - 3Manchester City
14 Dec 2025Crystal Palace
0 - 3
Manchester City
12 Apr 2025
Manchester City5 - 2Crystal Palace
12 Apr 2025Manchester City
5 - 2
Crystal Palace
07 Dec 2024
Crystal Palace2 - 2Manchester City
07 Dec 2024Crystal Palace
2 - 2
Manchester City
06 Apr 2024
Crystal Palace2 - 4Manchester City
06 Apr 2024Crystal Palace
2 - 4
Manchester City

Premier League

Gameweek 31

18 Feb • 20:00
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Arsenal
2 - 2
20 Mar • 00:00
Bournemouth
Manchester United
2 - 2
21 Mar • 00:00
Manchester City
Crystal Palace
21 Mar • 12:45
Brighton and Hove Albion
Liverpool
2 - 1
21 Mar • 15:00
Fulham
Burnley
3 - 1
21 Mar • 17:30
Everton
Chelsea
3 - 0
21 Mar • 20:00
Leeds United
Brentford
0 - 0
22 Mar • 12:00
Newcastle United
Sunderland
1 - 2
22 Mar • 14:15
Aston Villa
West Ham United
2 - 0
22 Mar • 14:15
Tottenham Hotspur
Nottingham Forest
0 - 3

What is GAP?

What is Plus Minus Goals (G±)?

Plus Minus Goals (G±) is the average goal difference per game while the player was on the pitch. A value above 0 indicates that the team rather wins, a value below 0 means his team concedes more goals than they score when the player is on the pitch. As an example, if the player's team is winning 3:1 the goal difference is +2, if the player's team is loosing 0:1, the goal difference is -1. It is a pure metric which is barely adjusted for circumstances to purely show the goal difference.

What is GAP?

GAP (Game Advantage Percentage) shows the percentage gap between a player and the average league player. It answers the question: How much does a player improve or worsen a team's performance? It is based on high level game data with a focus on the impact on the goal difference (G±) from the last 50 games of a player. Besides that, GAP goes further and considers game context by involving data from the player and all other players who are at the same time on the pitch, no matter if teammates or opponents. Football GAP - the individual metric for team players.