Crystal Palace: A Statistical Deep Dive into Their 2025/26 Season

Intro

In Gameweek 7, the last undefeated team in the Premier League suffered their first loss, as Crystal Palace fell to Everton in dramatic fashion. Despite that setback, the current FA Cup champions are off to a strong start, sitting 6th in the Premier League. Their campaign already includes a win over Liverpool, and as they prepare for a challenging run of fixtures, we’ll dive into Gradient’s data for a closer look at their season so far.

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Style of Play

Palace have lined up in a 3-4-3 formation in every game so far. Their back three have been outstanding, conceding only five goals — tied for the 2nd-best defensive record in the league. A key part of that strength lies in the work of their wing-backs. Daniel Muñoz and Tyrick Mitchell have been electric both in and out of possession.

• Muñoz ranks 1st in total distance covered at high-speed running (20–25 km/h) with 7.3 km, and 2nd in this category when measured both in and out of possession.
  
  
• Mitchell ranks 6th overall with 5.75 km in high-speed running and 3rd among full-backs and wing-backs.
  
  

Palace are not overly concerned with dominating possession, spending the 3rd-lowest minutes in possession so far this season. Their focus is on defensive solidity and efficiency when they do have the ball. Let’s take a deeper look at how they perform out of possession versus in possession.

Out of Possession

As mentioned, Crystal Palace spend more time out of possession than most teams. Some of that may be due to their opposition so far — Chelsea, Villa, Forest, and Liverpool all rank in the top six for possession — but the trend holds.

Palace have the lowest pressure rate in the opponent’s third (63 per 30 mins out of possession), preferring to focus their intensity in the middle and defensive thirds. In those zones, they rank 2nd and 4th in the league, respectively.

• Jean-Philippe Mateta leads the league in pressures in the middle third (231).
  
  
• Mitchell and Muñoz rank 3rd and 4th in pressures in their own third (155 and 148).
  
  
• Overall, Muñoz and Mitchell lead all wing-backs in total pressures (330, 1st; 284, 2nd).
  
  

This compact shape makes Palace extremely difficult to play through. They’ve allowed the 5th-fewest line-breaking passes in the league and rank 1st when normalized per 30 mins out of possession (only 23.9 allowed). They also lead the league in blocks on passes attempting to break the last line of defense.

Their discipline is another standout factor. Palace have recorded the 2nd-fewest positional downgrades (12.03 per 30 mins out of possession).

Let’s look at how the back three perform individually:

Chris Richards is the most positionally sound of the trio, recording the second-fewest positional downgrades among centre-backs (0.39 per 30 minutes out of possession), behind only William Saliba. He also posts the league’s highest grade for defending dribbles at 92.0, winning 76.9% of them and conceding just one downgrade. With an overall challenge grade of 84.1, Richards has been consistently reliable across all defensive actions.

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Marc Guéhi ranks seventh among centre-backs for positional discipline with 0.78 downgrades per 30 minutes out of possession. His tackling grade of 88.1 is the second-highest in his position, and he also boasts the second-highest success rate in duels. Guéhi has the second-most interceptions with a positive grade, and in 50-50 situations, he wins an impressive 88.9% of his battles, earning a positive grade in 77.8% of them. His 50/50 grade of 79.0 sits above average, though his smaller sample size adds some volatility.

Maxence Lacroix, meanwhile, provides athletic balance to the back line. While his positional data sits around league average, his speed allows him to take more risks. He owns the second-highest top speed among centre-backs and ranks fifth for interceptions on passes that attempt to break a defensive line. Lacroix is also dominant in duels, posting the league’s third-highest grade for 50-50s at 89.2.

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In Possession

While Palace spend the third-least time in possession this season, they have been highly effective when they do have the ball. When normalized per 30 minutes in possession, their attacking numbers reveal a side that values directness and precision.

Palace spend 4.2% of their possessions in the opposition box, tied for the fifth-highest rate in the league. Interestingly, their involvement in the middle and final thirds is relatively low, which underscores their preference for moving the ball forward quickly rather than building gradually.

They play the fewest backward passes in the league (14.2%) and attempt the most line-breaking passes at 49.5 per 30 minutes in possession, completing 68.6% — the second-lowest rate in the league, reflecting the ambitious nature of their passing. They also attempt 3.9 passes per 30 minutes that try to break multiple lines at once, ranking second in that category. Palace lead the league in passes attempting to break the final line of defence (8.75 per 30 minutes) and sit second for passes that break the midfield line (28.9).

Much of this attacking threat originates from their wing-backs. Muñoz ranks third among all full-backs and wing-backs for receptions in dangerous areas, and together with Mitchell, the pair combine for the third-most dangerous receptions of any duo in the league.

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Palace also rank first for passes creating a half-chance or better per 30 minutes in possession (3.04). Three of their players — Yeremy Pino, Ismaïla Sarr and Adam Wharton — appear in the league’s top 10 for this category, ranking second, seventh and tenth respectively. Pino also leads the league for passes that lead directly to dangerous positions and ranks among the top 10 for dribbles creating similar opportunities. Although he benefits from fewer minutes due to the normalization of possession data, it’s an encouraging start for the new signing.

Crossing Efficiency

Crossing is another area where Palace’s efficiency shines through. They complete 26.2% of their crosses, seventh-best in the league, and 27% of their total crosses are classified as accurate, ranking fourth. More importantly, 13.1% of their crosses lead to a half-chance or better — the highest rate in the Premier League.

Their execution in wide areas is not just about delivery but coordination. Palace have the lowest percentage of incomplete crosses caused by poor runs or mistimed movements (5.3%), highlighting how well-drilled they are off the ball. As a team, they also record the third-highest proportion of positively graded crosses (13.9%) and the second-lowest percentage of downgraded crosses (29.5%).

Adam Wharton has emerged as a standout performer in this aspect of their play. His crossing grade of 80.5 is tied for seventh in the league, and he ranks fifth in completion percentage at 38.9%. He is also fourth for accuracy at 44.4%, and remarkably, more than a quarter of his crosses (27.8%) lead to a half-chance or better — second-best in the division. Many of these come from set pieces: Wharton has taken 10 set-piece crosses this season, completing six, and creating two half-chances and two clear chances.

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Oliver Glasner’s Manager of the Month award in September is well deserved. Palace look tactically disciplined, minimizing positional errors and making it difficult for opponents to penetrate their defensive lines. In possession, they show excellent efficiency and movement, creating high-quality chances when opportunities arise.

However, football is a low-scoring game, and efficiency alone can fluctuate in its impact on results. Increasing the volume of chances will be key to sustaining success. That said, Palace’s combination of defensive solidity and purposeful attacking play provides a strong foundation to continue evolving from a mid-table side into a genuine top-six contender.

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