Crystal Palace

The Red Devils made eight changes for the clash with the Eagles but Sir Alex Ferguson could not be accused of putting out a weak team as it still contained eight full internationals.

The simple fact is that Palace wanted it more and deservedly came away with the extra-time win at Old Trafford.

How boss Dougie Freedman would have loved his charges to put in the same kind of performance in the Championship over the past few weeks, as he has watched his men struggle and fail to win in five attempts (Palace 16/1 To Be Promoted).

The south Londoners’ last league victory was a 1-0 success away at Ipswich and they have since played out goalless draws with Reading, Portsmouth and Millwall, while suffering defeats to Leicester and Cardiff.

Scoring goals has clearly been the problem, especially at home, as the Palace faithful have witnessed the opposition net rippling on just eight occasions on their own patch, while they have scored 10 goals on their travels en route to 26 points and 12th place in the table.

Freedman has made his side hard to beat and the five goals they have conceded at home is second only to Birmingham in that category in the division.

But you have to score to win and that is something that needs to be addressed, otherwise a few 0-0 scorelines will start changing to 1-0 losses as the season progresses with the inevitable slide down the table.

Darren Ambrose and Glenn Murray scored the goals that dumped United out of the competition and the challenge now is for the pair to replicate that from in the league, to help out their team-mates at the back who have done such a stellar job this term.

The victory came at a cost however, as Dean Moxey (knee) and winger Sean Scannell (thigh) will both miss Friday’s encounter, while Wilfried Zaha was limping at the end of a gruelling 120 minutes and is rated as doubtful with just a 48-hour turnaround.

Derby had high hopes of either automatic promotion or a play-off place at least this term but the early-season optimism when they won four straight games to kick off their campaign has long since evaporated.

The Rams have lost six out of seven Championship games and five in a row and will travel to London desperate to halt their plunge down the standings.

They have conceded three goals in three of their past five games and it is obvious that they have serous problems with their defence.

Nigel Clough’s side has conceded 17 goals on the road this term and scored just nine and the statistics for both outfits suggest that a single goal might win this one.

John Brayford remains a fitness doubt for the visitors after sitting out Tuesday’s defeat to Brighton, having recently returned from a five-week lay-off.

Clough may opt for an unchanged side after admitting that he was pleased with the performance against the Seagulls despite the defeat.

With pressure mounting on the boss and the drop zone now just four points away, the former Liverpool striker would take a dismal display in the capital as long as he came away with there points.

Both sides are desperate for a win but Palace are tipped to sneak it by the odd goal to begin their climb up the table.

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Crystal Palace v Wigan (8pm)

This is the stand-out contest from the two Tuesday evening fixtures as it throws up the possibility of a lower league outfit dispatching a top-flight side from the competition.

Sunderland, Norwich, QPR and Swansea were notable scalps for Football League sides in the second round and Dougie Freedman’s Eagles have the potential to see off Roberto Martinez’s Latics in south London this week (21/10 Home 90 Minutes).

Palace have made a decent start to their Championship campaign, but things have just started to slide with Saturday’s 3-2 defeat at Leeds following on from a 1-1 draw against Blackpool at Selhurst Park before the international break.

Therefore, they will be looking to get a confidence-boosting win under their belts ahead of Saturday’s league visit of Middlesbrough – who, ironically, they will also face at Selhurst Park next Tuesday in the third round if they progress past Wigan.

Freedman is not expected to make too many changes from the side that lost the five-goal thriller at Elland Road so midfielder Darren Ambrose will possibly start on the bench, while defender Anthony Gardner could be in the squad.

Latics boss Martinez is expected to make wholesale changes to his squad for the long trip to London with James McCarthy poised to return from a knee injury, new signings Shaun Maloney and Patrick van Aanholt could play.

Conor Sammon and former Wolves midfielder David Jones are also set to be handed starting roles, while former Palace trio Ben Watson, Victor Moses and Emmerson Boyce could be denied a reunion with old friends by being handed the night off with Martinez having one eye on Saturday’s game against Everton.

It looks like being a close encounter as Palace have won three and drawn one of their four home games this season, while Wigan’s (5/4 Away 90 Minutes) defeat at Manchester City being their first reverse since April.

Extra-time could well be on the cards while an under-strength Wigan could be the key for Palace to edge them out and progress to round three.

Prediction: Draw 90 Minutes @ 12/5
Value Bet: 1-1 Correct Score 90 Minutes @ 6/1

Charlton v Preston (7.45pm)

An all-League One affair at the Valley sees high-flying Charlton face an improving Preston side, who sit just outside the play-off places.

Chris Powell’s Addicks have looked all the better for their summer overhaul as the vast number of new faces have gelled in well with the remaining players to see them sit unbeaten in second spot, level on 17 points with leaders Sheffield United.

However, it is on the road where Charlton have excelled as they have a 100 per cent record from three games, while points have been dropped against Scunthorpe and Sheffield Wednesday on home turf.

But, with a trip to Championship high-fliers Southampton awaiting in round three, Charlton can point to the fact they defeated second tier side Reading 2-1 in the first round at home and also recorded a comfortable 2-0 win against Exeter at the weekend.

Bradley Wright-Phillips has again been the key man for the Addicks with five goals in the bag already this season, but with Powell promising “one or two changes” for the game there is no guarantee he will be in the starting XI.

Preston chief Phil Brown has also hinted at some changes for the game with promotion back to the Championship also his top priority for this season.

As a result striker Iain Hume, who played in Friday evening’s 4-3 win against Yeovil despite featuring for Canada on international duty 48 hours earlier, could get the night off to prepare for Saturday’s league tussle at Brentford.

North End (5/2 Away 90 Minutes) are also on a decent run after remaining unbeaten in the five games following a disappointing opening day 4-2 defeat against Colchester at Deepdale, while they came from behind to defeat Crewe 3-2 at home in round one.

As with the first game, it is difficult to call (5/2 Draw 90 Minutes), as both managers are clearly looking to give a several key men a break from the action.

However, Charlton have the strength in depth to cope with a myriad changes and that should be enough to get them marching through to face the Saints at St Mary’s next Wednesday.

Prediction: Charlton Home 90 Minutes @ 21/20
Value Bet: Charlton 2-1 90 Minutes Correct Score @ 7/1

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