The final match of the penultimate gameweek of 2017 is a London derby which has plenty of intrigue around it, with Palace having hit form to haul themselves out of the relegation zone and Arsenal losing ground in the race for a top-four spot.

We will look at both clubs in depth a little later, but first let's check out the team news...

Well, we will have a closer look at the hosts in a short while, but let's start by looking at an Arsenal side which sees three changes to the team which drew against Liverpool in that thrilling contest six days ago.

The most notable of those come in defence as Calum Chambers is handed something of a surprise start due to Nacho Monreal's absence through an ankle injury.

Koscielny keeps his place at the heart of the defence, but it is all change around him with Mustafi and Chambers coming in, as well as a return for Sead Kolasinac at left wing-back, with Maitland-Niles dropping back to the bench.

Xhaka got on the scoresheet during the 3-3 draw with Liverpool, but it would be fair to say that the jury is still out over the Arsenal midfielder.

Sanchez has not been at his best so far this term but both he and Ozil scored against Liverpool and will once again be looking to prove that they are committed to the Arsenal cause amid the endless speculation over their futures.

Benteke finally ended his long goal drought during his most recent Palace appearance and will be desperate to find the back of the net again this evening, but he has only ever scored in three of his 25 home Premier League games for the Eagles.

That, of course, forces a reshuffle elsewhere in the team, with Wilfried Zaha and Andros Townsend - who were the two most attacking players in that match against the Swans, expected to play in a slightly more withdrawn role today. Zaha has also featured up front for Palace this season, though, so don't be surprised to see him pop up alongside Benteke on a regular basis tonight.

Zaha's pace and trickery works well in tandem with Andros Townsend too, and Arsenal will need to be wary of those two wingers whipping crosses into the head of Benteke tonight.

There are no changes at the back, meanwhile, as long-serving Julian Speroni continues between the sticks and Kelly, Dann, Tomkins and Schlupp are once again tasked with protecting him.

To have picked up no points whatsoever from their first seven Premier League games of the season and still go into the Christmas period out of the relegation zone is an impressive feat, and huge credit must go to Hodgson for that.

No goals and no points from those four matches ultimately spelled the end for De Boer, but Hodgson now seems to have turned the team around after also getting off to a slow start - to the extent that victory this evening would lift Palace up to 13th.

Palace's position is a lot less perilous than it was a few months ago, but they are still only one point clear of the relegation zone and are one of three teams locked on 18 points. Palace do have this game in hand over the teams around them in the table, but it is all very crowded down there.

Palace took the lead against the Swans and could have put more distance between themselves and the league's bottom club had they managed to hold on following Milivojevic's penalty, but Ayew levelled things up for the hosts at the Liberty Stadium and ultimately Palace were forced to make do with a point.

You have to go back to November 5 for the last time Palace tasted defeat in the league, although that did come at the hands of North London opposition when Tottenham Hotspur ran out 1-0 winners.

The Eagles have been particularly impressive at home too, going six Premier League games unbeaten here at Selhurst Park and notably scoring exactly two goals in all of those matches - having failed to hit the back of the net at all in their first three.

Palace's home form will face some stringent examinations over the coming months too, with six of their next seven home league games coming against team currently in the top seven - starting, of course, tonight.

Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham - the three teams directly above Arsenal in the table - all won earlier this week, so the pressure is now on for the Gunners to pick up a crucial victory. Arsenal's league position will not change tonight - unless they win by eight or more goals - but a win would be the difference between finding themselves four points from the Champions League places or one.

The Gunners are unbeaten in their last six games across all competitions since their 3-1 defeat to Arsenal at the beginning of December, but in the Premier League they have only won one of their last five outings.

Instead, Arsene Wenger's side are languishing in sixth and they will know that they need to return to winning ways sooner rather than later if they are to avoid this slump becoming fatal to their Champions League hopes.

It is their goalscoring on the road which will be the biggest concern, though, with Arsenal netting just three times in their last five away outings and only nine times away from home in the Premier League all season - fewer than the likes of Newcastle, Stoke and West Ham.

Five of Arsenal's nine away league goals this season came in one game too, with the Gunners drawing a blank in four of the remaining eight such outings. That was the case in the most recent league away game too, when West Ham held on for a 0-0 draw at the London Stadium earlier this month.

Twenty-five of Arsenal's 34 points this season have come at the Emirates, dropping only five points in front of their own fans compared to a whopping 18 on the road. Indeed, only two wins from their opening nine away games is Arsenal's joint worst away record at this stage of a Premier League season.

Arsenal have suffered 11 Premier League defeats this year - the most ever in a calendar year under Wenger - while their tally of 48 goals conceded is also their most in a calendar year since 1984, when they let in 57.

Palace's improvement in recent weeks makes this one quite a difficult one to call, particularly with Arsenal not at their best too. However, the Gunners know that anything other than victory could be very damaging to their top-four hopes, so we're backing them to scrape the win.

SPORTS MOLE SAYS: Crystal Palace 1-2 Arsenal

That victory was memorable for a few other reasons too, as Palace picked up their first home win over Arsenal since November 1979 in addition to scoring three goals in a game against them for the very first time.

Palace have only won one of their last 12 home league games against their London rivals, though, so that result was very much the exception to the rule.

The reverse fixture last season went the way of Arsenal on New Year's Day, although neither of their goalscorers from that match - Giroud and Iwobi - are starting this evening.

CRYSTAL PALACE STARTING XI: Speroni; Kelly, Dann, Tomkins, Schlupp; Milivojevic, Cabaye, Loftus-Cheek, Townsend, Zaha; Benteke

ARSENAL STARTING XI: Cech; Chambers, Mustafi, Koscielny; Bellerin, Xhaka, Wilshere, Kolasinac; Ozil, Lacazette, Sanchez

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Speroni could perhaps do better with the initial shot as Lacazette whips a fierce strike towards the far corner which the Palace keeper can only parry away. His save falls straight to Mustafi, though, and the defence strokes the rebound into the empty net - making it look a lot easier than it was.

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Indeed, it should be a lot better for Arsenal, who could well be out of sight at the halfway stage. The Gunners only have the one-goal lead, though, and while that remains the case Palace will still fancy their chances of rescuing something from the game.

Speroni could have perhaps done better having only managed to parry Lacazette's initial effort into the path of Mustafi, although it was by no means a howler from the Palace keeper.

Ozil had the best chances, twice being played clean through on goal by Sanchez but failing to squeeze his finish past Speroni on both occasions. Lacazette and Sanchez himself have also come close, but Palace managed to avoid any further damage.

The hosts did not manage a single shot on target in the opening 45 minutes, with Benteke far too much of a peripheral figure throughout.

It comes out of nothing really as Zaha lines up Chambers on the left channel and pulls a low ball into the box. Townsend has peeled away round the back and meets the ball with a fine first-time finish which leaves Cech no chance.

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Lacazette is initially the man looking to find some shooting space inside the box, but he eventually just leaves it for Sanchez. The Chilean takes his shot early and puts everything behind it, sending the ball crashing past Speroni at the near post. The Palace keeper got a hand on it, but there was just too much pace on that one.

Wilshere is the creator with a pinpoint pass over the top of the defence, releasing Sanchez from just inside his own half. Sanchez still has plenty to do, but he takes the ball down on his knee before sliding it past Speroni and into the bottom corner. Lovely goal.

Ultimately it was a quickfire Alexis Sanchez brace which won Arsenal the points after Shkodran Mustafi had earlier opened the scoring, with Townsend and Tomkins scoring in reply for the hosts. The Gunners move back to within a point of the top four, whereas Palace stay just a point clear of the relegation zone.

Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's match as Arsenal record a 3-2 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park to move back to within a point of the Champions League places. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too.

From me, though, it is goodbye for now!