September 1, 2024 20:30
English Premier League 3rd round
Chelsea vs Crystal Palace
Chelsea's performance in the past two seasons has been poor, and although they have invested a lot in the transfer market, they have not achieved the expected results. However, the recent 6-2 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers
After that, the form has picked up and become a force to be reckoned with again in the Premier League. This Sunday at 8:30pm, Chelsea will face Crystal Palace in the London Derby, a new challenge. Chelsea lost 1-2 against Servette, and manager Maresca took off a lot of his starters. In the victory against Wolves, Chelsea relied on fast counter-attacking tactics to succeed, which gave Maresca new tactical ideas. However, Chelsea's home performance is not good in the past few years, much worse than their away record.
Crystal Palace is not doing well this season. After Hodgson left, the team is in trouble. In the first round, Crystal Palace lost 1-2 to Brentford, the first defeat of the season. Back at home, they lost 0-2 to West Ham United, they haven't got any points yet, and they are facing relegation pressure. So when they play Chelsea on the road, Crystal Palace might just want to get a draw.
It's important to note that Crystal Palace are one of Chelsea's well-performing rivals in the Premier League, and Chelsea doubled up on them last season, winning 1-0 and 3-1, as well as winning all of their matches against them for the seventh consecutive year. For Maresca, this is a good opportunity to win consecutive Premier League victories and could be the key to getting back into the Champions League race. Chelsea has not been in the Champions League for two consecutive seasons, which is clearly a pain point for the team.
Now, Chelsea's top brass have excluded four of Sterling, Zilver, Broa and Chalobah from first team training, and they will miss the recent Premier League matches. Chelsea is moving fast and decisively in bringing in reinforcements and clearing out old players, which is surprising. In addition, the team's owner Burley will be at Stamford Bridge for the match, having invested more than 600 million euros in the team, and is looking forward to seeing a big win.
