In the Premier League match on Wednesday at Selhurst Park, Manchester United will try to earn their tenth straight victory across all competitions.
In the Manchester derby on Saturday, the Red Devils defeated fierce rivals Manchester City 2-1, while Patrick Vieira's team lost to London rivals Chelsea 1-0.
Although Crystal Palace made Kepa Arrizabalaga make numerous saves and stretched the 38-year-old Thiago Silva's legs to the limit, their efforts were in vain as Chelsea narrowly won the Sunday London derby.
After seeing their brief FA Cup run come to an end at the hands of Southampton last week, Crystal Palace was doomed to a terrible third consecutive loss in all competitions as Kai Havertz headed home the game's lone goal with 64 minutes remaining.
Although they have a game in hand on Chelsea, the Eagles are currently 12th in the table and six points off the top half. There was a lot to appreciate about this Palace team during the autumn, but as the weather has gotten colder, results have proven harder to come by for the Eagles.
Vieira admitted that his team's performance had him frustrated, but he also had some issues with referee Peter Bankes at Stamford Bridge. However, Vieira must put aside his issues with the officials as he looks to give Palace their second victory in their past six Premier League games.
The Eagles have lost four of their past five games in the Premier League; they haven't scored in any of those defeats, and their sole win during that stretch came against Bournemouth. However, Selhurst Park hasn't seen the hosts lose three straight games without scoring since September 2017.
The latest bizarre interpretation of the offside rule came to the fore in Saturday's Manchester derby, where Jack Grealish headed Man City into the lead before Bruno Fernandes controversially levelled after Marcus Rashford was deemed not to have been interfering with play.
The England international then scored a perfectly good goal in the dying embers to turn the Old Trafford clash on its head and seal a ninth successive victory in all tournaments for Man United, whose fans may allow themselves to dream of Premier League title glory after closing the gap on the reigning champions.
Ten Hag's men dropped down to fourth in the rankings on Sunday after Newcastle United - who are only ahead on goal difference - left it late to beat Fulham, but Man City are only a point clear of their rivals, and a nine-point gap to leaders Arsenal is by no means insurmountable.
Of course, the Gunners could potentially increase their lead over Man United to double figures when the Red Devils visit the Emirates at the weekend, but victory on Wednesday would be enough to lift Ten Hag's side into second for the time being.
Not since the days of Sir Alex Ferguson in 2009 have Man United won 10 games in a row in all tournaments, but Ten Hag watched on from the stands with a glum expression as Palace beat the Red Devils 1-0 at Selhurst Park in the final weekend last season, and the hosts have only lost twice in their last six showdowns with their esteemed visitors.
Injury was added to insult for Palace in their defeat to Chelsea, as ever-present centre-back Joachim Andersen came off with a calf problem in the first half, although Vieira is not sure of the severity of the Dane's issue just yet.
Anderson joins long-term absentees James McArthur and Nathan Ferguson in the infirmary, but Vieira has no other concerns to work around for Wednesday, where Wilfried Zaha will line up from the off against his former employers.
Zaha has already scored three Premier League goals against Man United and could set a new record for players to have previously played for the 20-time English champions with a fourth, while Andersen's place in the backline should be filled by James Tomkins.
Man United did not come out of their clash with Man City unscathed either, as Anthony Martial had to come off at half time with an unspecified issue, while Marcus Rashford took a whack to the hip but managed to carry on until stoppage time.
Donny van de Beek, Axel Tuanzebe and Jadon Sancho remain out of contention for the visitors, who are also unlikely to have Diogo Dalot back from a hamstring injury just yet, meaning that a start for ex-Eagles right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka should be in order.
Antony can expect a recall to the frontline if Martial's latest problem renders him unavailable, while Lisandro Martinez was again restricted to a substitute outing in the derby as he builds up his fitness following the World Cup, but the Argentine ought to come into contention for a start here.
Burnley loanee Wout Weghorst should also come into contention for his full debut with Martial a doubt, but the Dutchman will likely be named on the bench here.
Crystal Palace possible starting lineup:
Guaita; Clyne, Tomkins, Guehi, Mitchell; Schlupp, Doucoure, Eze; Olise, Mateta, Zaha
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Martinez, Shaw; Fred, Casemiro; Antony, Eriksen, Fernandes; Rashford
In previous years, Palace has served as something of a bogey team for Man United, so the probable loss of Andersen would be a stinging blow to a squad that struggled to keep the back door closed at home over the winter.
Even with Zaha leaving with a point to prove, if Man United can score first, the in-form Red Devils can feel safe in holding the goal-shy Eagles at bay. We therefore predict Ten Hag's team to extend their winning streak into double digits with a clean sheet in tow.