It is never boring being a Palace fan. After the highs of winning the FA Cup and Community Shield for the very first time, there has been an undercurrent affecting the club all the way through.
Now that the decision has been made public, even though we all know that it is unjust and wrong, like Oliver Glasner said in his press conference, it is time now to focus on the campaign ahead, starting with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge this weekend.
Much has been made of the lack of signings with only Walter Benitez and Borna Sosa who replacing the outgoing Matt Turner and Joel Ward respectively. The real bonus is starting the season with both Ebere Eze and Marc Guehi but it could be a tough few weeks trying to keep them for at least one more season. We can but hope!
The Eagles head into the opening fixture of the 2025/26 campaign in good form having had a decent pre-season and beating Liverpool at Wembley last weekend to secure a second trophy of the year – what a time to be alive!
There will be an awful lot to contend with this season with a busy fixture list, with our first home game of the season being the Conference League Play Off first let at Selhurst in mid-week against Norwegian side Fredrikstad.
First things first, World Club Cup champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. It does remain to be seen if a busy summer of competition will impact the hosts at the start of the season having not had a proper break since the end of last season.
Their squad oozes quality and they certainly are not shy when it comes to the transfer market as we all know, but there does appear to be more of a strategy now and many predict that it will not be long before they are challenging for the title.
A key absence for them will be Levi Colwill who suffered a disappointing and expecting to be a season ending injury, while suspended Nicolas Jackson is being linked with a move away from West London after the arrivals of Liam Delap and Joao Pedro.
While Palace continue to have long term absentees in Chadi Riad, Cheick Doucoure, Eddie Nketiah, and Matheus Franca, Japanese international Daichi Kamada is expected to miss out after picking up an injury in the victory over Liverpool. Will Hughes is expected to step in to replace him, just as he did at Wembley and really made his mark.
It will be extremely to difficult for Palace to live up to the success of last season, but they have started off in fine fettle. This is a special group of players who are have a real togetherness and show true commitment. With three cup competitions to compete in as well as the Premier League, there is hopefully plenty to keep us entertained this season. We have a taste for success, and it tastes oh so sweet. Winning breeds confidence and becomes a habit so let’s see where this journey takes us.
🏟️ Match Details
- Fixture: Chelsea vs Crystal Palace
- Date: Sunday, 17 August 2025
- Kick-off: 2:00 PM BST
- Venue: Stamford Bridge, London
🔵 Chelsea
Chelsea enter the 2025–26 Premier League season riding high after winning the FIFA Club World Cup. Under Enzo Maresca, the Blues are aiming to build on last season’s top-four finish and push for the title.
- Home Form: Lost only 2 of 19 home league matches last season.
- Key Absences: Nicolas Jackson (suspended), Levi Colwill (injury doubt).
- New Signings: Willian Estevao, Jamie Gittens, Jorrel Hato, João Pedro.
- Predicted XI:
Sanchez; James, Chalobah, Hato, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Neto, Palmer, Gittens; Delap
🔴 Crystal Palace
Palace are fresh off their FA Cup and Community Shield triumphs and looking to improve on their 12th-place finish last season. Manager Oliver Glasner has instilled a disciplined, pressing style that helped Palace earn more points away than at home last season.
- Away Form: 7 wins, 7 draws, 5 losses last season.
- Key Players: Eberechi Eze, Marc Guehi, Adam Wharton.
- New Faces: Borna Sosa (LB), Walter Benitez (GK).
- Predicted XI:
Henderson; Richards, Guehi, Lacroix; Munoz, Hughes, Kamada, Mitchell; Eze, Sarr; Mateta
📊 Head-to-Head & Stats
- Chelsea are unbeaten in their last 15 Premier League matches vs Palace (W13 D2).
- Palace drew both league fixtures vs Chelsea last season (1-1 home and away).
- Chelsea have won 20 opening weekend matches, second only to Manchester United.
🔮 Prediction
Chelsea’s momentum and depth give them the edge, but Palace’s resilience will make it close.
Predicted Score: Chelsea 1–1 Crystal Palace
Check out the match preview by our pals over at Playmaker where you can see our comments and predicted line up for the game.
