Match Preview: Crystal Palace vs Chelsea

Newly promoted Crystal Palace, look to gain their first points of the season in a match against current title holders Chelsea.  

The match kicks off at 19:30 on Friday 27th September and is being televised on Sky sports. 

 Crystal Palace have the home advantage, with the game being played at Selhurst Park, but will this be enough to threaten a strong Chelsea side who look to extend their dominance in English football? 

Previous matchup: 

Palace and Chelsea had a close encounter in the FA cup in February, with Chelsea coming away with a narrow victory.  

Although being a championship side at the time, Palace held a good defense and had some good chances, with the only Chelsea goal coming late on in the 81st minute from Mayra Ramirez’s back heel.  

Given this recent result, Crystal Palace may feel confident playing Chelsea at home.  

Could Crystal Palace return with a shock result over the Blues? 

How have the squads changed since February? 

However, the squad that faced Palace in February has changed massively, with some big players leaving, and big players joining.  

Chelsea have seen the likes of Melanie Leupolz, Fran Kirby and Jess Carter leave the club, while also bringing in players like Sandy Baltimore and Lucy Bronze who have been looking promising for Chelsea.  

On the other hand though, Crystal Palace’s squad has also changed since then, even signing Lexi Potter on loan from Chelsea.  

Other signings also include Poppy Pritchard, Josie Green and Brooke Aspin - who will miss Friday’s game due to a red card against Tottenham.  

Lexi Potter played well in the midfield on Sunday, with Pritchard looking very good as a ‘super-sub’.  

How are both clubs looking after their first games of the season? 

Chelsea kicked off the WSL season with a 1-0 win against Aston Villa at Kingsmeadow.  

The match winner was scored by Johanna-Rhytting Kaneryd in the first half.  

Although winning the game, Chelsea did look open at the back when Aston Villa counter attacked.  

If Crystal Palace want to win, they will have to exploit this openness in Chelsea’s back line. 

For the Eagles, their WSL season did not get off to a great start, with a 4-0 loss to the Lilywhites of London – Tottenham.  

Palace held Spurs to 1-0 at half time, while also producing some chances themselves, but were overcome in the second half.  

Frustrations got the better of Crystal Palace with them ending the game on 4 yellows and 1 red card for Aspin.  

Crystal Palace against Chelsea will be an interesting game that you can catch on Sky Sports at 19:30 on Friday.  

Featured Image Courtesy of James Boyes via Flickr. No changes have been made to the image