Chelsea Vs Crystal Palace Prediction: Hot Deby, The Blues Threatened To Win At Stamford Bridge?

Cole Palmer cs. will play the inaugural match of the Premier League with Chelsea (photo: x @premierleague)

JAKARTA - Chelsea will start their journey in the Premier League for the 2025/26 season with the London derby match against Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge on Sunday 17 August.

Both teams successfully lifted the trophy last season. Chelsea won the title at the Conference League and Club World Cup, while Palace has just added their collection by winning Community Shield after overthrowing Liverpool on penalties.

Chelsea came with a modal of optimism, although last season they only finished fourth. The result is enough to return to the Champions League, but with a large investment that has been disbursed, expectations on Enzo Maresca's troops are much higher this season.

Despite its success in the cup tournament, Maresca still needs to prove its consistency in the league. Last season, Chelsea's performance slumped sharply after competing with Liverpool at the top of the standings in December, until they had to wait until the last match to secure a Champions League ticket.

Chelsea's pre-season is short because of the tight schedule for the Club World Cup. They had only had two trials, beating Bayer Leverkusen and AC Milan. However, the real test has only started now, especially since all four of their first matches face fellow London clubs: Palace, West Ham, Fulham, and Brentford.

Chelsea's record against Palace is also profitable. They were unbeaten in the last 15 Premier League games against the Eagles, including eight at Stamford Bridge with seven wins. Even in the 2021 season, Chelsea also beat Palace 3-0 in the opener.

However, Palace came with high motivation. Despite failing to appeal to the relegation to the Conference League, Oliver Glasner's team remained confident. They are in 9 unbeaten competitive matches and determined to start the season better than last season, when they only won once in 13 early matches.

Chelsea will lose Levi Colwill for most of the season due to ACL injuries. Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile are also still having problems, so Tosin Adarbioyo is expected to have a duet with Trevoh Chalobah on the back.

On the front lines, Nicolas Jackson is absent due to suspension, so Joao Pedro is likely to appear as a starter. Romeo Lavia is also still injured, making Maresca estimated to field the same line of players as against Milan.

From the Palace camp, the return of Adam Wharton and Marc Guehi is good news, although Guehi's future is still being tempted by Liverpool. Daichi Kamada is doubtful after last week's injury, while Eddie Nketiah is also absent due to muscle problems, joining Cheick Doucoure and Chadi Riad in the treatment room.

This match is unlikely to be easy for Chelsea. Last season they were also held to a draw at Stamford Bridge, and the Eagles showed toughness against Liverpool at Community Shield. If Eze and Guehi appeared from the start, Palace's chances of extending the unbeaten record to 10 matches would be even greater.

Estimated line-up

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; James, Tosin, Chalobah, Cucurella; Enzo, Caicedo; Neto, Palmer, Gittens; Joao Pedro.

Crystal Palace (3-4-3): Henderson; Richards, Lacroix, Guehi; Munoz, Wharton, Hughes, Mitchell; Sarr, Mateta, Eze.

Prediction of theChelsea 1-1 Crystal Palace score