Overview
Chelsea have been showing signs of decline recently. In the most recent round, The Blues were surprisingly defeated by the rookie team Ipswich Town with a score of 2-0. It was their third consecutive winless match, including 2 defeats to underdogs.
That disappointing streak has seen coach Enzo Maresca’s team drop to fourth place, just three points ahead of Newcastle. If they don’t improve their form soon, the Blues could be pushed out of the top four in the near future.
Meanwhile, Crystal Palace are showing positive changes in form. They have only lost 1 of their last 7 Premier League matches. Palace's loss was to Arsenal, while they have drawn with Man City, Newcastle and Aston Villa.
Overall, the London representative has played well against the "big guys" in the Premier League this season. Besides the home advantage of Selhurst Park, they can confidently take points against Chelsea. This is the stadium that has witnessed Crystal Palace draw with Man City, Newcastle and defeat Tottenham.
However, Chelsea's away form is not bad. In 10 away matches this season in the Premier League, The Blues won 6, drew 2 and lost only 2.
Their away goal record is even better than their home (23 goals compared to 15). If they play to their full potential, The Blues can take all 3 points away from home.
Palace's 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge last September ended a run of 13 consecutive Premier League defeats to Chelsea. Overall, Chelsea have won 12 of their 15 Premier League away games against Palace (D1 L2).
Human resources situation
Crystal Palace go into the match against Chelsea without three injured players, including Matheu Franca, Adam Wharton and Franco Umeh-Chibueze.
On the other side of the front line, Chelsea lost Mykailo Mudryk due to suspension for using banned substances. Benoit Badiashile and Wesley Fofana are absent due to injury.
Expected lineup:
Crystal Palace: Henderson, Guehi, Lacroix, Chalobah, Mitchell, Lerma, Hughes, Munoz, Eze, Sarr, Mateta.
Chelsea: Sanchez, Gusto, Adarabioyo, Colwill, Cucurella, Caicedo, Fernandez, Neto, Palmer, Sancho, Jackson.
The match between Crystal Palace and Chelsea takes place at 22:00 on January 4 (Vietnam time).
