Villa break through in behind for the final action of normal time, but fortunately their attacker drags his effort well wide of the trialist's goal.

Hugo Bull lets fly with an absolute rocket that thunders against the crossbar! The rebound drops invitingly, but Williams can't react quickly enough to turn it home. So close for Palace!

Bernard-Ferguson thinks he's snatched it for Palace, turning home into an empty net after a neat move, but the flag is up for offside! At the other end, the trialist produces an excellent close-range save to keep things level and set up a tense finale.

The game opens up following a flurry of substitutions, and Kayden Moses almost makes it count, driving in from the right before unleashing a fierce effort towards the roof of the net, which Oakley tips over. Baah and Hugo Bull then try their luck from the resulting corner, but Villa are beginning to pose problems on the counter as their compact defensive approach becomes increasingly apparent with 10 minutes to go.

Villa are now entrenched in a deep defensive block, sitting just outside their own area as the Young Eagles launch wave after wave of attack.

An alert Donte Martin intercepts a stray pass from the goalkeeper and looks to be through on goal, only for the referee to blow for a foul.

Martin then goes close again moments later, seeing a stinging effort blocked inside the area!

Excellent skill from Lamidi to cut inside and deliver, but Martin can't quite get on the end of it...

The Young Eagles are turning the screw now! Donte Martin drives a fierce, low effort towards the far corner, but it whistles narrowly wide as Palace step up the pressure approaching the hour mark.

Alfie Mulvenna thinks he's restored Palace's lead as he finds the back of the net, but the celebrations are short-lived as the assistant's flag goes up for offside!

A reminder of the permutations: Palace must beat Villa to secure a place in the U18 Premier League Cup quarter-finals. As it stands, the Young Eagles are heading out...

A lively opening 45 minutes at the Academy, with the Young Eagles making a bright start before Villa gradually grew into the contest.

Anderson put Palace ahead, but Bindley drew the visitors level with a header approaching the 20-minute mark. The big moment came when Clay Atkins saw red for an appalling challenge on Bernard-Ferguson, leaving Villa with 10 men for the second half.

There was almost a late twist, too, as Jake Doughty's deflected free-kick trickled narrowly wide with the trialist rooted to the spot. All to play for after the break!

Greaves fires across the face of goal, but the onrushing Martin is denied from point-blank range by an excellent save from the 'keeper!!

A shocking challenge on Bernard-Ferguson sees Clay Atkins shown a straight red card. There's no hesitation from the referee, who sends the Villa man off following an appalling foul!

As we approach the 20-minute mark, Bindley rises highest to meet a whipped cross from the right, guiding his header beyond the 'keeper to cancel out Anderson's opener.

Anderson is played through and lifts over the onrushing 'keeper. His effort is cleared off the line, but he makes no mistake with the rebound!

Villa's inswinging corner is initially cleared, but only as far as Moss, whose strike is well struck and forces a strong save from Palace's trialist goalkeeper.

Donte Martin gets in behind to chase a ball over the top inside the opening four minutes, with the onrushing 'keeper seemingly handling outside his area. Palace appeal for handball, but the referee isn't interested.

Makai Bernard-Ferguson is causing Villa problems early on, with his trickery and dangerous deliveries into the box.

Villa get the ball rolling in south London.

Come on you Palace!!

Here we go! Both sides emerge and take their places for the pre-match formalities. One final look around the Academy before we're ready for kick-off.

Come on, Palace!

That's the end of the warm-up, and the Young Eagles head inside for their final preparations. Kick-off is almost upon us!

Both sides are out on the pitch, with the ‘keepers working through their drills and the outfield players getting loose ahead of kick-off!

Javier Alonso makes three changes from the Brighton draw. Lucca Benetton and Nat Kalembo, both involved with the first team against Hoffenheim on Thursday, are absent, with trialist and Raihaan Anderson coming into the side. Alfie Mulvenna also replaces the suspended Remi Shittu at centre-back, partnering Hugo Bull.

Young Eagles Nat Kalembo and Lucca Benetton both made the matchday squad for Thursday's UEFA Europa League clash with TSG Hoffenheim, with 16-year-old Kalembo earning his first competitive senior call-up.

Eight groups of four compete for a place in the quarter-finals, with only the winner of each section progressing.

Palace are in Group C alongside Nottingham Forest, Leeds United and Aston Villa, with today's fixture their final group-stage outing.

Javier Alonso's side return to action on a five-match unbeaten run, having hit their stride since the September-October international break.

A 3-0 victory over Leeds kept their cup defence alive before Donte Martin's consecutive hat-tricks inspired emphatic wins over Ipswich (6-2) and Reading (5-3).

Most recently, the Young Eagles showed their resilience to earn a 1-1 draw at Brighton, overcoming Remi Shittu's early dismissal before Ajean-Ray Greaves struck to secure a point.

The Young Eagles enjoyed a memorable run to last season's final, navigating a group featuring eventual national champions Manchester City and U18 Premier League South winners Chelsea.

After drawing 3-3 with City, victories over Sheffield United and Chelsea secured a quarter-final spot, where Palace beat Peterborough United.

A last-gasp David Angibeaud header then saw off Tottenham Hotspur to book a place in the final against Manchester United at Selhurst Park.

Benji Casey's late penalty forced extra-time, but neither side could find a winner. Palace then converted all six penalties to lift the trophy for the first time in the club's history.

It's win or bust for the Young Eagles, who need three points to give themselves the best chance of reaching the quarter-finals.

Only the eight group winners progress. Villa lead Group C on four points, with Palace and Nottingham Forest both on three, although the Young Eagles boast a superior goal difference (+2 to -5). Leeds sit bottom on one point.

A Villa draw could be enough if Forest fail to beat Leeds. However, if Forest win, Palace must take all three points. Even then, Forest would need to beat Leeds by at least eight goals more than Palace's winning margin to overtake the Young Eagles on goal difference.

Welcome to the Crystal Palace Academy, where the Under-18s face Aston Villa in a decisive final Group C fixture, knowing victory will see them reach the U18 Premier League Cup quarter-finals.

It's all to play for, with kick-off at 12:00 GMT. We'll bring you all the build-up and live updates right here.

Come on, Palace!