Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

The Independent's journalism is supported by our readers. If you click links to other sites on this page, we will earn commission. 

Doncaster vs Crystal Palace prediction: Mateta to make the difference for Eagles

Follow our football betting tips as Crystal Palace travel to Doncaster in the FA Cup fourth round on Monday

Becky Ashton
Monday 10 February 2025 11:28 GMT
Jean-Philippe Mateta could help Crystal Palace into the fifth round of the FA Cup
Jean-Philippe Mateta could help Crystal Palace into the fifth round of the FA Cup (EPA)

Doncaster vs Crystal Palace betting tips


Crystal Palace travel to Doncaster tonight looking to avoid a potential FA Cup shock against a side who have lost their last seven FA Cup ties against a top-flight opposition (7:45pm, BBC iPlayer, BBC Red Button).

The League Two side beat Hull City in the last round, going through 5-4 on penalties following a 1-1 draw at the MKM Stadium.

Up against Palace, the challenge will be a lot harder, but the pressure will be on the Premier League team to make sure they don’t join Liverpool and Southampton in being dumped out of the competition by an EFL side.

There will also be the added incentive that Grant McCann’s men will already know their potential fifth-round opponents, with the draw taking place before kick-off.

They go into the game third in the League Two table, well placed to return to League One for the first time since 2022 and with four wins from their last five games.

Doncaster face a Palace side in their best form of the season, with five wins from their last seven matches including away at Leicester, West Ham and Manchester United.

The Eagles have also won at Aston Villa and Brighton this season, so won’t be worried about making the trip up to South Yorkshire, especially to play in such an impressive venue as the Eco-Power Stadium.

It will be the second time the two sides have met in the FA Cup and the first time since they played in the fifth round since 2019.

Doncaster vs Crystal Palace betting preview: Palace to take their place in the fifth round

While we love a good cup shock, it’s hard to see Doncaster having enough to beat the Premier League side, but that will obviously depend very much on the team Oliver Glasner puts out.

Liverpool boss Arne Slot will have thought the team he picked on Sunday would have had enough to beat the Championship’s bottom side but if attitudes aren’t right, then quality is not always enough - especially in the FA Cup.

With only the league and this competition on Palace’s radar, we would expect Glasner to name a strong side tonight because another win continues to breed confidence. They’ve not played since last Sunday and are at home to Everton on Saturday, so there is plenty of time to recover.

Football betting sites are all backing a win for the visitors with odds of 31/100, while you can get 10/1 on a home win and 21/4 on a draw after 90 minutes.

While Doncaster haven’t beaten a top-flight side in this competition since 1985, when they beat QPR, Palace have won their last 11 FA Cup games against sides from the fourth tier (or lower) since a 2-1 loss at Hartlepool in January 1978.

It is also just the second time that Rovers could reach the fifth round of the competition in 68 years. The last time was the 2018/19 season when they beat Oldham Athletic to set up a fifth-round meeting with tonight’s opponents.

This is the first time Palace have got past the third round since they reached the semi-finals in 2022, where they were beaten 2-0 by Chelsea at Wembley.

Glasner’s side have kept four clean sheets in their last five games, and we expect a relatively easy night for Marc Guehi and co but Doncaster Rovers striker Billy Sharp will have other ideas.

The 39-year-old has only lost twice to Palace in nine matches, winning four and drawing three whilst scoring twice - and betting sites have him at 9/2 to score at any time.

Doncaster vs Crystal Palace prediction 1: Palace to win to nil - 6/5 William Hill

Mateta to score again

Jean-Philippe Mateta has to be the best £11m Palace have spent and he has more than repaid that transfer fee with 39 goals since making his move permanent in January 2022.

This season he has scored 18 goals for club and country - well France U23’s as an overage player in their Olympic squad, where he scored five goals before they were beaten 5-3 in the final by Spain.

In the league, he has scored six goals in his last five games, including braces in 2-0 wins against West Ham and Manchester United.

Betting apps are offering 7/2 on him scoring first or last and 23/20 on him scoring any time. He’s scored first three times in his last five games and last three times (and first and last twice) so anyone who has backed his lately will have been quids in.

You can also get 5/1 on him scoring two or more, something he has done five times this season and nine times since the start of last season.

Doncaster vs Crystal Palace prediction 2: Mateta scoring first - 7/2 Bet365

Please gamble responsibly

When having a bet, it’s vital to practice responsible gambling.

Sports betting can be addictive, so bettors should take precautions to keep themselves safe when using gambling sites.

Every licensed UK betting site should offer safer gambling tools, such as deposit limits, time outs, self-assessment questionnaires and self-exclusion options.

These are free tools to help punters stay in control and they are available at various gambling sites, including online bookmakers, casino sites, slot sites, and poker sites.

These operators may offer punters free bets or casino bonuses from time to time, but it's important to treat these rewards with caution.

Read the terms and conditions before accepting any bonus as most new casino sites will require you to place a cash bet before handing out the reward.

Always remember that sports betting is meant to be fun. It should never be viewed as a guaranteed way to make money.

If you ever feel like you need help or advice on gambling addiction, don’t hesitate to contact one of the charities or organisations below.

We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

We aim to offer every online gambler and reader of The Independent a safe and fair platform through unbiased reviews and offers from the UK’s best online gambling companies.

Gambling can be addictive, always play responsibly and only bet what you can afford to lose. Gambling sites have a number of tools to assist you to stay in control, including deposit limits and time outs. If you think you have a problem, advice and support is available for you now from BeGambleAware or Gamcare.

Any offers or odds listed in this article are correct at the time of publication but are subject to change. Terms & Conditions apply to all offers.

GamstopBe Gamble AwareGamCare18+

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in