Another season of promise under Patrick Vieira will soon commence for Crystal Palace, who enter the 2022-23 Premier League campaign firmly intent on ending their bottom-half hoodoo.
The former Arsenal Invincible had big shoes to fill after Roy Hodgson vacated the Selhurst Park hotseat, and some notable results were posted in 2021-22, even if the Eagles could only end up in 12th.
Seeing Conor Gallagher return to Chelsea was a painful goodbye, but Sam Johnstone, Cheick Doucoure, Chris Richards and the highly-rated Malcolm Ebiowei are all ready to strut their stuff.
Palace have suffered defeats to Liverpool and Manchester United in a busy pre-season period, but victories over the likes of Millwall, Queens Park Rangers and Montpellier HSC have also come the Eagles' way.
Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look ahead to Crystal Palace's 2022-23 campaign, including predictions, summer signings and their star player.
FIXTURES
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Seeking to replicate their stunning 3-0 success over Arsenal from a few months ago, Crystal Palace will kick off the new Premier League campaign against the Gunners at Selhurst Park on August 5.
The Eagles must also face off against Liverpool and Manchester City before August comes to a close, and the first edition of the M23 derby with Brighton & Hove Albion takes place on September 17.
Boxing Day sees Crystal Palace pit their wits against newly-promoted Fulham, and a home clash with Tottenham Hotspur awaits for their first fixture of 2023.
An extremely kind end to the season sees the Eagles face all three promoted Championship clubs in the final three weeks, with Bournemouth and Fulham awaiting just before a gameweek 38 battle with Nottingham Forest.
> Click here to see all of Crystal Palace's 2022-23 fixtures
SUMMER SIGNINGS
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In
Malcolm Ebiowei (undisclosed, Derby County)
Sam Johnstone (free, West Bromwich Albion)
Cheick Doucoure (£19.2m, Lens)
Chris Richards (£8.5m, Bayern Munich)
Out
Martin Kelly (released)
Jaroslaw Jach (released)
Tayo Adaramola (loan, Coventry City)
Remi Matthews (loan, St Johnstone)
Cheikhou Kouyate (released)
Crystal Palace total spent to date: £27.7m
Crystal Palace total received to date: £0m
Crystal Palace net transfer balance: -£27.7m
SQUAD
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Goalkeepers: Vicente Guaita, Sam Johnstone, Jack Butland
Defenders: Marc Guehi, Joachim Andersen, Chris Richards, Nathan Ferguson, James Tomkins, Tyrick Mitchell, Joel Ward, Nathaniel Clyne
Midfielders: Luka Milivojevic, Cheick Doucoure, Jairo Riedewald, Will Hughes, Jeffrey Schlupp, James McArthur, Eberechi Eze, Michael Olise, Malcolm Ebiowei
Forwards: Wilfried Zaha, Christian Benteke, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Odsonne Edouard, Jordan Ayew, Luke Plange
STRONGEST XI
STAR PLAYER - Wilfried Zaha
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Not a single transfer window goes by where Wilfried Zaha is not linked with a move away from Crystal Palace, but as things stand, the 29-year-old will soon spend his eighth full season at Selhurst Park.
The Eagles can usually rely on Zaha to deliver on the goalscoring front, and the 2021-22 season was no different, as the tricky Ivorian hit 14 goals in 33 Premier League appearances, as well as a solitary strike in the FA Cup.
Zaha now sits fourth in the all-time list of appearances for Palace with 423 and needs just one more goal to match 10th-placed Andy Johnson (84) in the top scorer charts, but rumours surrounding his future continue to swirl.
The former Manchester United youngster has now entered the final 12 months of his contract with Vieira's side, and Roma boss Jose Mourinho is said to be interested in working with him next season.
MANAGER - Patrick Vieira
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Receiving a Premier League Manager of the Season nomination for his efforts in the 2021-22 season, former Premier League title winner Patrick Vieira means business at Selhurst Park.
The 46-year-old enjoyed a far from memorable period at the Allianz Riviera with Nice, but several members of the English elite learned not to underestimate Vieira's youthful and determined Palace outfit.
Channelling his winning spirit from his days on the field, Vieira led his side to victories over Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United last season, as well as taking the Eagles to Wembley for the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
However, things then turned ugly at Goodison Park when Vieira kicked out at a pitch invader who aggravated him back in May, but that is now water under the bridge, and the Frenchman has plenty of years left as a top-level manager.
LAST SEASON - 12th
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Adjusting to life without Roy Hodgson in the dugout was not going to be a cakewalk for Crystal Palace, who were the resident draw specialists in the early weeks of the 2021-22 season, with seven of their first 12 games ending level.
The Eagles would often hover around the top-half mark during the early stages of the campaign without breaking into the top 10, and not until gameweek 30 would Vieira's side emerge into a single-figure ranking with a domineering 3-0 win over Arsenal.
Palace would soon drop back down into mid-table obscurity as inconsistency bedevilled them, and a 12th-placed finish befell the London club, which would represent an improvement on back-to-back 14th-placed rankings during Hodgson's final two years in charge.
Palace are therefore yet to finish in the top half of the Premier League table since returning to the big time in 2013, but Vieira's players enjoyed a Wembley outing in 2021-22 after making it all the way to the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
Chelsea would ultimately prove to be too strong in the final four, though, and the less said about Palace's EFL Cup fortunes the better, as they were sent packing by Watford in the second round back in August.
PREDICTION
Crystal Palace are far from the finished article under Vieira, but the absence of Conor Gallagher could have a major impact on the Eagles' ability to challenge for a top-half finish, even if optimism is high surrounding Ebiowei and Doucoure.
Plenty of Palace's mid-table rivals have arguably strengthened to a greater degree than Vieira's side have, so the Selhurst Park faithful will likely have to wait for their side to finally break into the top half, and a third 14th-placed finish in four seasons is a realistic possibility.
VERDICT: 14th
Ben Knapton
