Chelsea: Lessons learnt as Blues edge out Crystal Palace

Chelsea made things difficult for itself as Selhurst Park resulting in some intense situations. What lessons did we learn from the match?

For better or worse, Chelsea’s victory at Selhurst Park was mostly of a confirmation of things we already knew. Kepa Arrizabalaga and Andreas Christensen are problematic, Mason Mount and Willian are absolute workhorses, Christian Pulisic is the best footballer alive, etc. If anything, the takeaways from this match are mostly confirmations of suspicions we’ve been harboring all season. Fortunately, on this occasion, all of the positives and negatives came with the four vital points attached:

1. Kurt Zouma is the undroppable centerback

Chelsea tried out an interesting two-man defense against Crystal Palace. On paper, Lampard fielded a back four, but only Kurt Zouma and Cesar Azpilicueta displayed any real intention to repel Palace’s onslaught—and yes, it was an onslaught.

While Azpilicueta’s contributions are nothing new, though we should never take them for granted, it was Zouma’s performance that stood out and made the difference at the timeliest moments for Chelsea. Were it not for Zouma’s intervention, Christian Benteke would have almost certainly slotted past Arrizabalaga to earn a point for the home side right at the death. If a Chelsea player puts in a better challenge this year, I can’t wait to see it. It was a ludicrously brilliant tackle under the most dire of circumstances.

There’s no debating that Zouma is Chelsea’s most athletically gifted center back, perhaps of all time, but reducing his game to speed and strength is wrong and problematic on a number of levels. History shows that Zouma’s athleticism hasn’t always led to great defending, so his one-man wrecking crew showing against Palace proved that his game has developed beyond just a collection of raw physical tools.

Zouma popped up basically everywhere in the box over the course of the ninety minutes. Whether it was winning headers, clearing crosses or blocking shots, Zouma hardly put a foot—or head—wrong all day. That stood in stark contrast to Christensen, Zouma’s centerback partner, if only in name. Palace’s second goal came from static defending and a boot stuck out too late by Christensen, allowing Patrick van Aanholt to get in behind and play a cutback for Benteke to tap in. Even then, Zouma made a decent attempt to slide in and cut out the pass, but arrived just a split second too late. It was the only time all day he missed a crucial challenge.

The variety of the challenges Zouma won speaks to how excellent his awareness and anticipation have become. To do so without getting caught out of position takes a degree of discipline few Chelsea players are capable of right now. It wasn’t a perfect performance—after all, Palace scored twice and should’ve scored a third—but it was absolutely heroic under the circumstances.

Chelsea very clearly needs to strengthen its centerbacks over the summer. We’ve known that for a long time. If Tuesday proved anything, it’s that whoever comes in needs to match up well with Zouma. Whether that’s Declan Rice (eh) or someone else (Upamecano?), the Blues can expect to slot in alongside the imposing Frenchman next season. Zouma himself has been linked with a move elsewhere, but performances like Tuesday’s should prove to Lampard and the other decision makers at the club that he is indispensable.

Given Christensen’s absolute nuclear meltdown, you can plan on seeing Antonio Rudiger alongside Zouma against Sheffield United. It’s not ideal, but as long as Zouma is in there, you have to think Chelsea at least stands a chance of keeping a clean sheet.