After recording a fantastic 2-0 victory over Fulham on the opening day of the season, Roy Hodgson's side have slumped to three straight defeats in the Premier League. 

Palace have a tough job on their hands as they bid to remain in the top-flight, especially if Wilfried Zaha continues to struggle with injury.

The Eagles lost all 9 of the fixtures which Zaha was unavailable for last season and they continued to demonstrate their toothlessness without the Ivorian as they lost 2-0 at home to Southampton prior to the international break.

Hodgson has suffered another injury blow this week as Christian Benteke withdrew from the Belgium international squad due to a knee injury, according to Football.London.

And it seems that Zaha is also facing a race against time to return to fitness ahead of the clash against Huddersfield next weekend as injury specialist Ben Dinnery confirmed that the Ivory Coast international has still not returned to training via his Twitter account.

The Verdict:

Although Benteke has been an ever-present at the spearhead of Palace's attack so far this season, there will certainly be plenty supporters who are breathing a sigh of relief.

The injury he collected towards the back end of the 2017/18 campaign forced Hodgson to make a tactical switch and opt for a more dynamic approach upfront and it paid dividends as Palace steered to safety.

His recent blow should hand the likes of Jordan Ayew and Alexander Sorloth the opportunity to stake a claim for a starting berth and, on the evidence of Benteke's form in the past twelve months, it's fair to say a first-team place is there for the taking.

On the other hand, the fact Zaha has not yet returned to training is a huge cause for concern for the supporters, but if he is back on the training ground by early next week there is every chance he will be ready to feature against the Terriers at the John Smith's Stadium.

Crystal Palace fans - thoughts? Let us know below!