How can Palace reach the EFL Trophy knockout stages tonight?

Academy

4 hours ago

Crystal Palace Under-21s sit top of Southern Group E ahead of tonight’s trip to Plymouth Argyle, having opened their EFL Trophy campaign with a 2-1 victory at Swindon Town last week.

Palace and Swindon are currently the only teams in the group to have played, with Plymouth Argyle and Newport County yet to begin their campaigns. That leaves Darren Powell’s side on three points at the summit ahead of their second group fixture at Home Park tonight.

The EFL Trophy features 48 League One and League Two clubs alongside 16 Category One academies, split into 16 groups of four.

Each team plays three group matches, with the top two progressing to the Round of 32. A draw after 90 minutes earns each team one point, with a penalty shootout determining an additional point.

How can Palace qualify tonight?

A victory over Plymouth would take Palace to six points, and there is one scenario in which that would be enough to secure a place in the knockout stages immediately.

If Swindon and Newport draw in the other group fixture tonight, both sides would take one point, with a second available from the penalty shootout.

With only one group game remaining, Swindon could therefore reach a maximum of five points and would be unable to catch Palace.

Newport, meanwhile, would have two points at most and, like Plymouth, would still have two games remaining. Either side could still finish above Palace, but they will meet each other in their final group fixture, meaning they cannot both do so.

Palace would consequently be guaranteed a top-two finish with victory over Plymouth and, therefore, qualification for the knockout stages.

What if the other result goes against us?

If Palace beat Plymouth but Swindon defeat Newport, the Young Eagles would move to six points but would not qualify immediately. Swindon could still reach six by beating Plymouth, while the Pilgrims and Newport could also reach six by winning their remaining two games. The top two would therefore remain undecided until the final games.

If Newport beat Swindon instead, Palace would again move to six points, but Newport could still finish above them by winning their remaining games against Plymouth and Palace, while Plymouth could also reach six by winning their remaining fixtures against Swindon and Newport. Swindon, however, would be unable to catch the Young Eagles, with only one game remaining.

A draw or defeat for Palace tonight would leave qualification undecided. A draw would take the Young Eagles to four points if they win the ensuing penalty shootout, or three if they lose it, while defeat would leave them on three.

Whatever happens, Palace will have one final group fixture to come against Newport County at Rodney Parade on Tuesday, 3rd November (19:00 BST).

A chance to make history

Palace have competed in the EFL Trophy since 2021/22 but have never previously progressed beyond the group stage.

Three points is also the club’s previous best points tally in the competition, meaning anything Palace collect beyond that total would set a new record.

With three points already secured, the Young Eagles therefore have two opportunities to make history: first by setting a new club points record, and ultimately by reaching the knockout stages for the first time.

Watch the action live

Unable to make it to Plymouth?

Every EFL Trophy fixture is available to watch live on Sky Sports+ throughout the competition.

The match will be available to stream in the UK via Sky Sports+, the Sky Sports app and NOW.

Follow Palace online

Follow live commentary throughout the game on our Academy X page, with updates from Home Park.

After the final whistle, a full match report and reaction will be published in our Academy news section, while highlights will follow on Palace TV+.

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Match Details

Plymouth Argyle v Crystal Palace Under-21s

Tuesday, 22nd September
19:00 BST
Home Park
EFL Trophy
Buy tickets now!

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