Crystal Palace Under-21s return to EFL Trophy action on Tuesday evening when they face Plymouth Argyle at Home Park, with kick-off scheduled for 19:00 BST. Darren Powell’s side already have three points after opening their group campaign with a 2-1 victory at Swindon Town, and another win would place them in a strong position to progress.
Palace will be looking to respond after suffering their first defeat of the season on Saturday, when Blackburn Rovers edged a 1-0 Premier League 2 contest at Sutton’s Borough Sports Ground. The Young Eagles had two penalties but were unable to convert either opportunity: Benji Casey struck both posts with the first, while Seb Williams saw the second saved after the interval. Taha Majni was later sent off, before Blackburn scored the only goal.
Despite that setback, Powell’s team have made an encouraging start to the campaign. They drew with Arsenal, defeated Aston Villa and recorded an impressive 2-1 win against Paris Saint-Germain in their Premier League International Cup opener. At Swindon, Caleb Kporha and Williams overturned an early deficit to secure Palace’s opening EFL Trophy victory.
Plymouth represent a demanding test. The Pilgrims have won their last three League One matches, including a 4-2 success at Blackpool on Saturday, and sit third in the table with 13 points. Aribim Pepple scored twice in that victory, while Harvey White and Pepple also found the net. Plymouth have won four of their last five league games and have scored 12 goals across those victories.
The sides previously met in this competition during the 2022/23 season, when Plymouth recorded a narrow 1-0 victory at Home Park. Palace’s Under-21s will now have the opportunity to claim a result that strengthens their position in a format featuring 16 regional groups of four. The top two teams in each group advance to the knockout rounds, while level matches go straight to a penalty shoot-out after 90 minutes.
Every EFL Trophy match is available live on Sky Sports+, the Sky Sports app and NOW in the UK. Palace supporters can also follow live updates through the Academy’s X page, with a match report and reaction to follow after the final whistle and highlights available on Palace TV+.
