For 45 minutes it felt as if nothing had changed: yet another home game was threatening to turn into a tedious grind for Chelsea. They were short of ideas and inspiration in attack, even with Timo Werner on the left and Kai Havertz in the No 10 role. Crystal Palace, stubborn and resilient, were looking comfortable.
Yet Chelsea passed their test of patience, breaking Palace’s resistance when Ben Chilwell struck his first goal in blue since joining from Leicester City in the summer. It was a good workout for Chelsea’s maligned back four. Kurt Zouma settled the game when he headed in a cross from Chilwell and it turned into a rout from there, with two late penalties from Jorginho giving Frank Lampard’s side a heavy win.
Continue reading…
