Preview: Palace face Utah Royals in historic friendly

Match previews

16 Aug 2024

A historic occasion awaits Crystal Palace Women as they prepare to face Utah Royals at the America First Field this evening in Utah (Friday, 16th August, 19:00 MDT / Saturday, 17th August, 02:00 BST).

The culmination of a week’s worth of training at altitude in Salt Lake City has prepared Laura Kaminski’s side for their first ever pre-season game on foreign soil, where they will face Utah Royals of the National Women’s Super League (NWSL).

The game will be streamed LIVE on Utah Royals’ YouTube channel; click HERE to visit their channel.

Tickets are also on sale for the game, with prices from as low as $10 depending on seat location.

The Opposition

Palace have been training using the Royals’ state-of-the-art facilities in the past week, which is also home to the Major League Soccer (MLS) side Real Salt Lake.

The 42-acre campus features five natural-grass pitches and two full-size indoor fields and newly opened gym facilities in the SharkNinja Performance Centre.

Playing in the NWSL – the top tier of the United States league system – Utah Royals boast Summer Olympians including France’s Amandine Henry, Japan’s Mina Tanaka, Nigeria’s Ifeoma Onumonu and New Zealand’s Macey Frasey on their roster.

They have also recently signed Arsenal’s Cloé Lacasse to bolster their attack as they look to press on in the latter half of their season.

Jimmy Coenraets is the interim coach of the Royals and he typically deploys a 4-3-3 formation, though in recent weeks they have switched to a 3-5-2.

The Palace

Laura Kaminski’s side have seen six new additions since the start of the month and many of them may potentially feature in the game against the Royals.

The experienced Kat Veje will be looking to start her first game in red and blue, having most recently featured for Everton, while both Jorja Fox and Mille Gejl would also be pushing for a place in the starting XI after joining midway through the tour.

Elsewhere, Indiah-Paige Riley and Ashleigh Weerden would also be vying for a starting spot and Shae Yañez may be in-line to start between the sticks.

Captain Aimee Everett would be in contention to lead the side out at the America First Field, while the likes of Shanade Hopcroft and Isabella Sibley may also feature.

Match Details

Utah Royals v Palace Women
Friday, 16th August / Saturday, 17th August
19:00 MDT / 02:00 BST
America First Field
Click HERE to buy tickets
Click HERE to watch LIVE

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