Courtesy Tom Brogan
Chelsea FC geared up for another London derby this weekend, with Crystal Palace being the opposition. For Chelsea, every league game now becomes important, as they’ll need maximum points to claim the premier league trophy at season’s end. Palace on the other hand, are looking to secure their spot in the top flight for next season, and any points are good points for them at the moment.
From the beginning of the game, the atmosphere was that of a true derby match. The Palace fans were in their usual form, making Selhurst Park a formidable ground to travel too. But the Chelsea fans who made the short trip wouldn’t back down, making their voices be heard as well.
As both teams settled into the game, Fernando Torres was the one who almost opened the scoring. Branislav Ivanovic sent a long throw into the box, which the Palace defense had trouble clearing. The ball fell to Torres in the middle of the box, but his shot was blocked and put out for a corner. Andre Schurrle also had a near chance, as he almost connected at the far post after a Cesar Azpilicueta low cross.
Crystal Palace showed they weren’t going to back down, and their good play was almost rewarded in the 26th minute. After a nice bit of intricate passing in the penalty area, Jason Puncheon was able to get off a cross from the right wing. With Petr Cech out of position, Chelsea’s goal was exposed. Yannick Bolasie had an opportunity on the far post, but could only put his shot into the side netting.
It was again Palace in the 33rd minute who threatened. A well executed set piece for Cech to get down and make a key save.
As the whistle for halftime blew, Palace went in the better of the two teams. They defended well, had good possession, and saw a couple of opportunities. Chelsea were their usual self on the counter attack, but couldn’t seem to grab a hold of the game.
Palace found their breakthrough in the 51st minute after Joel Ward found space on the left hand side and sent in a ball near post. John Terry would find himself in the spotlight for the wrong reasons, as he ended up with the final touch, putting the ball past his own keeper.
Palace saw the next great chance as well, as Jason Puncheon made a darting run into the box, and tried to beat Cech far post. His shot came close, but went just past the goalpost, agonizingly so for Palace fans. Chelsea then saw a chance to equalize through Eden Hazard in the 73rd minute, but Julian Speroni made himself big and thwarted the effort.
The game could have been well and over just a minute later, but Cameron Jerome’s near post effort went off the post and behind.
The Blues last chance to save the game would come in the 87th minute. Torres looked to take advantage of a terrible error from Stuart O’Keefe. O’Keefe seemed to have time to clear the ball, but instead tried to play the ball back to Speroni. He didn’t get enough on the pass, and Torres pounced trying to lob a ball towards goal. Unfortunately for Chelsea fans, the ball sailed wide, as did their chances of claiming anything from the game.
Crystal Palace get one over on their London rivals 1-0. They deserved their victory, frustrating Chelsea throughout the match, and getting the bit of luck they needed to claim a memorable victory. The title race is now literally wide open, with the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal back in, and Manchester City waiting to make good use of their games in hand.
Chelsea will now have to put this game behind them, and prepare for a trip to Paris, to face French giants Paris Saint German in the UEFA Champions League.
Man of the Match – Joel Ward, the fullback put in an excellent shift, performing defensive duties well, and contributing to the games only goal.
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