Crystal Palace assistant manager Keith Millen insists they are not expecting as easy ride when they visit hapless Aston Villa tonight.

The Eagles, who won 2-1 at Southampton on Saturday to progress in the FA Cup, travel to the Midlands having failed to win, or score, in their past three Premier League games.

However, the Villans’ plight is far more catastrophic with no league win since the opening game of the season leaving them rock bottom and 11 points from safety.

Despite their predicament and unrest among the Villa faithful, Millen says Palace cannot afford to give them any glimmer of hope tonight.

“Villa have got some good players. He [Remi Garde] is trying to find a winning formula and we've got to guess what that's going to be and win the game,” he said.

“We've done our homework on them. They're trying to get a winning formula, so I can understand why they've changed systems.

“They've still got a lot of games left. You're just looking for that first win [in that situation] then confidence builds.”

He added: “They'll be fighting for their lives and we have to make sure we match that, develop our game and cause them problems.

“The Villa players will be hurting so they'll be looking for a response. They'll want to put a performance on for the home fans.

“We can't give [Villa] any encouragement. We've been there so we know what the pressure is like.

“They'll be looking for something to cling on to, the first goal to get the crowd going and get their confidence up.”

Millen, and boss Alan Pardew, are without Yannick Bolasie and Dwight Gayle, while Yohan Cabaye, Bakary Sako and Connor Wickham will travel tonight.