Tottenham travel to Crystal Palace under pressure, with form and fitness issues shaping this London derby. Palace hold a four-point advantage and sit eighth, while Spurs are 14th on 22 points. Recent domestic
struggles, plus busy European schedules for both clubs, turn this fixture into a key test of depth and resilience.
Spurs have collected only one victory from their last eight Premier League matches, a 2-0 home win over Brentford. Tottenham also finished with nine players in the defeat against Liverpool, highlighting discipline and squad strain. Palace, meanwhile, lost league games against Manchester City and Leeds United, and slipped out of the EFL Cup on penalties to Arsenal.
OPTA data suggests a tight fixture but leans towards a home win at Selhurst Park. Crystal Palace are given a 49% chance of victory, while Tottenham’s win probability stands at 25.4%, with the draw rated at 25.6%. These numbers reflect Palace’s stronger recent results and Spurs’ difficulties away from home.
| Outcome | OPTA win probability |
|---|---|
| Crystal Palace | 49% |
| Draw | 25.6% |
| Tottenham | 25.4% |
Recent meetings add another layer to the picture. Palace completed a Premier League double over Tottenham last season, winning 1-0 at home and 2-0 away. That matched the number of victories Palace had earned in their previous 22 league clashes against Spurs, which also included three draws and 17 defeats.
Tottenham’s history against Palace now carries extra weight. Last season marked the first time in league play that Spurs lost and failed to score in back-to-back games against the Eagles. Following the 2024-25 defeat at Selhurst Park, Spurs now attempt to avoid losing consecutive away league fixtures there for the first time.
Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank admitted current conditions make improvement challenging, with games arriving in quick bursts across competitions. Frank was asked whether this represented the hardest spell of a managerial career, and accepted the scale of the task, while stressing a determination to confront it. Frank compared the experience to early coaching work in Denmark with Brondby.
Frank explained the similarities and differences to that first role, pointing to the pressures around Tottenham’s size. Frank said: "I think I see a lot of similarities to first head coach job [at Brondby]. Although different scale. This is one of the biggest clubs in the world, so makes it a bigger and different challenge. First job, I tried to build something over time and with a lot of good people. Where this makes it extra challenging is we also play Champions League and Premier League at the same time. We are trying to improve when at 100mph. I have seen lots of things we improve on, but most important thing is how we can create consistent performances day in and day out. "
Crystal Palace coach Oliver Glasner has also felt the strain of a packed calendar, combining Premier League games with Conference League duties and domestic cups. Glasner did not hide frustration with the 3-0 league defeat at Leeds United, but accepted that fatigue can influence performances across such a demanding run of fixtures.
Addressing recent setbacks, Glasner said: "Of course, it was maybe the worst performance of this season against Leeds. Maybe we have to accept it, with all the games. This can happen, Glasner said. [Spursis] a great team, a very good manager there. To win against them, we have to show a great performance. Like every single Premier League game, it'll be a nice challenge for us. "
Crystal Palace vs Tottenham players to watch
Crystal Palace forward Jean-Philippe Mateta has been a key figure at Selhurst Park, especially in the Premier League. Mateta has scored 23 goals in his last 31 league starts on this ground. The forward also produced the decisive strike in this exact fixture in October 2024, but now faces a race to recover from a knee issue.
For Spurs, right-back Pedro Porro has emerged as a creative outlet, particularly with forward passing. Porro leads all Tottenham players for line-breaking passes this league season, with 133 completed. Porro has also delivered 13 passes breaching opposition defensive lines, and created 20 chances, a figure bettered within the squad only by Mohammed Kudus, who has 22.
Crystal Palace vs Tottenham key context
Palace’s recent schedule has been testing. Defeats to Manchester City and Leeds United in the league were followed by that penalty shoot-out loss to Arsenal in the EFL Cup. Their involvement in the Conference League has added further travel and rotation, yet Glasner remains hopeful the squad can respond with improved energy and focus against Tottenham.
Spurs’ situation is shaped by a poor run that left the club spending Christmas Day in the bottom half. Tottenham were 14th, with 22 points, after successive defeats to Nottingham Forest and Liverpool. They have managed only one league win in eight. Away from home, Spurs have not recorded a league victory since the end of October.
Building towards Palace @BetMGMUK pic.twitter.com/LITyn59B96Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) December 26, 2025
Historical patterns add intrigue around this fixture. Palace have won their final league game in each of the last four calendar years, having failed to do so in the nine previous years, with seven draws and two losses. Spurs, by contrast, have lost only one of their last 16 final league matches, winning eight and drawing seven.
Tottenham’s record in away London derbies against higher-placed opponents is another concern. When visiting capital rivals who start the day above them, Spurs have taken just one win from 19 such league matches, with six draws and 12 defeats. That lone success came at Brentford in February, a 2-0 victory that now feels distant.
