Chelsea’s new boss, Graham Potter would have another chance to record his first win for Chelsea when they travel to Selhurst Park to face Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Potter had his first game as manager for Chelsea ending in a 1-1 draw in the UEFA Champions League against RB Salzburg, and this weekend’s London derby clash with Crystal Palace will be his first EPL game since taking over as manager.
Going into the tie, Chelsea are seated seventh on the table with the Eagles placed sixteenth on the table but a meager four points away from Chelsea with no disowning that Patrick Veira side will be looking at closing that gap to move up the standings.
But then, the Eagles would have to be cautious of the Blues as players of Chelsea are presently fired up to prove themselves to their new boss. And although it’s still early days for Potter as regards getting his team to adapt into how he wants to play, Chelsea seem to know how best to play Crystal Palace – if history is anything to go by as they have won the last ten matches between both sides, keeping six clean sheets – and they will be looking at reviving that mojo irrespective of a new sheriff on the bench.
However, there is a slight worry for the Blues as Potter has never won Crystal Palace in his managerial career, drawing 4 and losing 3 of his seven encounters against them. But this is a new team with “better” players and it is expected that with Chelsea desperate for a top four spot being three points off, their force will be almost uncontainable by the Eagles.
And to serve as a boost towards such a possibility is the return of three of their first team players to action including N’golo Kante, Edouard Mendy, and Christian Pulisic. These are key players for Chelsea whose absence has been telling in recent games missed, and Potter will now have them at his disposal as he looks to start his premier league campaign with the Blues on a victorious note.
For Crystal Palace, the duo Jack Butland and James McArthur are likely to return from a metacarpal fracture and groin injury respectively this weekend.
Crystal Palace are famed for always putting up a tough test for the big teams in the Premier League, and it will not be far-fetched as seen in recent London derbies the challenge they will pose at Chelsea. Though not lucky in recent encounters with them, the spur to redefine such a narrative meeting with Chelsea’s and Potter’s hunger for a win makes the tie an explosive game for Saturday.
