Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner takes unusual step ahead of Leeds clash

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Oliver Glasner happily announced his starting team to face Leeds on Saturday night - and then admitted the key to stopping the in-form Dominic Calvert-Lewin is also no secret.

The Crystal Palace boss made 11 changes from his Premier League team for the UEFA Conference League home draw with Finnish side KuPS.

And 10 regular starters sat on the bench with only Nathaniel Clyne, 34, given the night off with two more games to play before Christmas . The South London club play eight games in December.

The FA Cup holders are back on the Elland Road pitch in under 48 hours to face Leeds and then visit Arsenal in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night.

And Glasner, who ran through his team at the end of his light-hearted press conference, said: “The 11 players who did not start (against KuPS), they will start at Leeds - Daniel Farke will know it now - and then I don't know what happens and who will be available for the Arsenal game.

"If I know this, I would be David Copperfield. And I told you on day number one, I'm not. I don't know what happens at Leeds, to be honest.”

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What is more predictable will be Leeds looking to find Calvert-Lewin in the box as he seeks to score in a fifth consecutive game. The former England striker scored a superb headed equaliser at Brentford on Sunday.

“I think we are one of the teams defending the crosses in the box very well with our centre backs who are very good at heading,” said Glasner. “We conceded one against Manchester City with (Erling) Haaland but we don't give them very often free headers in our box but sometimes you can’t and you have to defend the box. This is more or less the same with Calvert-Lewin. He is having a great time. And yes, we want to avoid the crosses.

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"We want to avoid the headers in the box. But you have to accept that you play in the Premier League against good opposition and there may be a few. And football is sometimes crazy because we conceded three against City. And we conceded two against KuPS from three. It looks like the opposition are quite efficient against us. It's time that this changes.”

Palace are seeking a fourth consecutive Premier League win after victories at Wolves , Burnley and Fulham .

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Leeds will be seeking a fourth game without defeat since Farke changed to a 3-5-2 formation

Asked if he would rather have played the Whites before this tactical switch, Glasner said: “I would have preferred not to have played them within 48 hours!”

The South London club play eight games in December and now face a two-legged UEFA Conference League playoff in February against either Bosnia and Herzegovina's HSK Zrinjski Mostar or Czech side SK Sigma Olomouc.

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