When Chelsea plays Crystal Palace at
Stamford Bridge on Sunday, they will finally be able to concentrate just on things on the pitch following a hectic summer of transfer activity.
Despite losing in Switzerland, the Blues secured their spot in the Conference League competition throughout the week and will want to improve on their crushing of Wolverhampton Wanderers the previous week.
As of this writing, Chelsea had spent £200 million on new players and over 20 players have left the team. Under Todd Boehly’s leadership, Chelsea has seen frequent turmoil over the summer.
A 2-0 loss to Manchester City on the first day of play demonstrated how far from the top they are, even after spending hundreds of millions of dollars, given the club’s unwelcome headlines off the field and criticism of their management style.
But on Sunday, when Chelsea defeated Wolves 6-1 at Molineux, new boss Enzo Maresca quieted some of the naysayers.
Noni Madueke and Cole Palmer’s performances earned them spots in the forthcoming England team.
Eberechi Eze’s rejected free kick against Brentford was a major discussion point during a crucial period of the game, and the England international was cursing the crossbar against West Ham United in another setback last week. Poor defending has also contributed to recent losses.
Since the Frank de Boer era, when Palace lost their first seven games but still managed to finish 11th, this is the first time that Palace has lost their first two games.
But despite the excellent impression that Glasner left on the Eagles preseason after his arrival in February, a relegation scrap was not what was anticipated.
Perhaps hoping to boost morale following those two bad losses, the Austrian manager went all out for Palace’s midweek EFL Cup match against Norwich City, and it worked like a charm as Palace triumphed 4-0.
Jean-Philippe Mateta scored a brace, including a stunning acrobatic volley, while Daichi Kamada also opened his Palace account. Eze was in fine form, scoring his first goal of the season.
On the injury front, Romeo Lavia is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury, and Reece James is still on the comeback trail with a thigh issue while also currently serving a suspension from last season.
After going with a very strong lineup in midweek against Norwich, Palace may stay largely unchanged, with Eze, Mateta and Adam Wharton all featuring from the start.
Matheus Franca remains out injured, and he is now joined on the sidelines by Chadi Riad, after the new signing was forced off after just 10 minutes in midweek.
Regarding injuries, Reece James is still recovering from a thigh problem and is serving a ban from the previous season, while Romeo Lavia is out with a hamstring ailment.
Palace may stick with a starting lineup that included Adam Wharton, Eze, and Mateta after playing a very powerful lineup against Norwich in the middle of the week.
Chadi Riad has also been forced to sit out since midweek due to injury, joining Matheus Franca, who is still out with an injury.
Read Also: Levi Colwill Biography