After a rather horrible run of results, albeit a brief respite with the victory at Bournemouth, Patrick Vieira and his Palace side return to Premier League action knowing that things do not get any easier in the coming weeks.
TIME/ DATE/ VENUE
- 2pm
- 15th January 2023
- Stamford Bridge, Fulham Road., London SW6 1HS
PREVIOUS MEETING
The last time Palace faced Chelsea at the Bridge was back in August 2021 when the hosts ran out 3-0 winners courtesy of goals from Marcus Alonso, Christian Pulisic and Trevoh Chalobah. The only real highlight for the Eagles was an appearance from the bench by youngster Jesurun Rak-Sakyi.
WHO SCORED MAN OF THE MATCH – Marcus Alonso (8.9)
OFFICIALS
- Referee: Peter Bankes
- Assistants: Eddie Smart, Nick Greenhalgh
- Fourth official: Darren Bond
- VAR: Michael Salisbury
- Assistant VAR: Simon Long.
TEAM NEWS
PALACE – Tyrick Mitchell (ban), James McArthur (groin), and Nathan Ferguson (fitness) are expected to miss out.
CHELSEA – N’Golo Kante (thigh), Raheem Sterling (thigh), Joao Sequeira (ban), Reece James (knee), Wesley Fofana (knee), Ben Chilwell (thigh), Armando Broja (knee), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (calf), Christian Pulisic (knee), Edouard Mendy (hand) and Denis Zakaria (thigh) are all due to miss out.
DISCIPLINARY THIS SEASON
RED CARDS – Tyrick Mitchell (1), James Tomkins (1), Conor Gallagher (1), Kalidou Koulibaly (1), Joao Felix (1)
YELLOW CARDS (5+) – Cheick Doucoure (5), Marc Guehi (5)
FORM GUIDE
Last FIVE meetings between the two sides;
- 01/10/22 Palace 1-2 Chelsea
- 17/04/22 Chelsea 2-0 Palace
- 19/02/22 Palace 0-1 Chelsea
- 14/08/21 Chelsea 3-0 Palace
- 10/04/21 Palace 1-4 Chelsea
Last FIVE results for Palace:
- 07/01/23 Palace 1-2 Southampton
- 04/01/23 Palace 0-4 Spurs
- 31/12/22 Bournemouth 0-2 Palace
- 26/12/22 Palace 0-3 Fulham
- 12/11/22 Forest 1-0 Palace
Last FIVE results for Chelsea;
- 12/01/23 Fulham 2-1 Chelsea
- 08/01/23 Manchester City 4-0 Chelsea
- 05/01/23 Chelsea 0-1 Manchester City
- 01/01/23 Forest 1-1 Chelsea
- 27/12/22 Chelsea 2-0 Bournemouth
LEAGUE POSITION
Heading into the fixture, Chelsea are 10th in the Premier League with 25 points from 18 games played while Palace are 12th with 22 points from 17 games.
RECORD AGAINST CHELSEA
- Played 61
- Won 11
- Drawn 15
- Lost 35
FORM PLAYERS ACCORDING TO WHO SCORED
- Kepa Arrizabalaga 7.08
- Reece James 7.08
- Eberechi Eze 6.94
- Wilfried Zaha 6.93
ONE TO WATCH
LEWIS HALL
FORMER CLUBS – none
The 18 year old has been given his first team debut by Graham Potter at left back mainly down to the number of injuries the club have suffered this season. However, in the three games played so far, Hall has shown why faith has been shown in him having already appeared at several youth levels for England.
KEY CLASH
WILFRIED ZAHA v CESAR AZPILICUETA
If, as expected, Vieira opts to use Zaha in his more threatening role of out wide then he will be up against the Spanish international who was expected to move on last summer.
PRE-MATCH FACTS
- Chelsea have won 11 consecutive matches against Palace
- Palace have registered just 4 wins in 27 league games, drawing 2 and losing 21
- The Eagles have conceded in each of their previous 17 top-flight matches against Chelsea
- There has not been a draw in any of the last 24 competitive encounters since it finished goalless in the league at Stamford Bridge in March 1995
- The Blues are seeking to avoid 4 consecutive league and cup defeats for the first time since a run of 6 in 1993 under Glenn Hoddle
- Chelsea have lost 2 of their past 3 league matches at Stamford Bridge, as many losses as they suffered in their previous 21 home fixtures
- Graham Potter could become the first Chelsea manager since Tommy Docherty in 1961-62 to lose his first 2 home London derbies in the league
- Potter is yet to beat Palace at home in his managerial career, drawing 1 and losing 3 of his previous clashes while in charge of Swansea City and Brighton
- Palace have lost 3 of their past 4 league fixtures, winning the other
- The Eagles beat West Ham 2-1 in November and are aiming to win consecutive top-flight away London derbies for the first time since 1997
- Palace could lose their opening 3 competitive games of a calendar year for the first time since 1994
- Patrick Vieira’s side are yet to win against teams currently in the top half of the table, drawing 3 and losing 5 of those fixtures
- Wilfried Zaha has only scored 3 goals in 18 career appearances against Chelsea in all competitions
PRE-MATCH STATS
- GOALS – Wilfried Zaha (6 – 15th in PL)
- ASSISTS – Michael Olise (4 – 1th in PL)
- PASSES – Joachim Andersen (1,013 – 13th in PL)
- TACKLES – Cheick Doucoure (40 – 14th in PL)
- TOUCHES – Joachim Andersen (1,247 – 17th in PL)
- SHOTS – Wilfried Zaha (38 – 16th in PL)
- SAVES – Vicente Guaita (49 – 12th in PL)
DID YOU KNOW?
The Blue have won league titles, FA Cups and League Cups but have also found success in Europe by becoming the only British club to win all three major UEFA trophies – the Cup Winners’ Cup, the Champions League and the Europa League.
PREDICTION
Both sides are bang out of form and the hosts have a massive injury list to contend with as well. The pressure is well and truly on Graham Potter and his men going into this match but Patrick Vieira and his players will want something from this game following the poor run of results since the World Cup. Maybe putting out there a bit but we fancy a point.
FINAL SCORE: 1-1
BETTING ODDS
- Home – 4/6
- Draw – 11/4
- Away – 4/1
- Both teams to score – 9/10
RESOURCES
