Crystal Palace claimed a late point with a 1-1 draw against Chelsea at Selhurst Park as the Blues’ winless run continued into 2025.
It was Jean-Philippe Mateta who hit back for Palace in the 82nd minute after Chelsea were seemingly coasting to victory off Cole Palmer’s early goal.
Mateta’s goal further compounded Chelsea’s festive slump as their winless streak extended to four games and their audacious title hopes faltered further.
With weather warnings promising near sub-zero temperatures, it was no surprise when an ice-cold Palmer slotted the ball past Dean Henderson to open the scoring (14). While the finish was impressive, the assist from Jadon Sancho stole the show as he beat Chris Richards with a neat piece of skill before finding Palmer with a cross into the area.
The early exchanges belonged entirely to the visitors with Chelsea’s wingers enjoying large amounts of the ball as they troubled Tyrick Mitchell and Daniel Munoz. The first chance fell Chelsea’s way in a move that set the tone for proceedings when Pedro Neto whipped a ball into the area looking for Sancho who blazed his first-time volley over in the third minute.
Palace grew into the contest after Chelsea’s goal, spurred on by the Selhurst faithful, mounting efforts of their own with Mateta seeing his chance glance wide after being set up by Munoz.
But the first half belonged to Enzo Maresca’s side who had a couple of opportunities with Nicolas Jackson firing wide before 18-year-old Premier League debutant Josh Acheampong nodded an effort wide.
Palace emerged from the half-time interval the better of the two sides with Eberechi Eze spurning a huge opportunity just moments after the restart. Palace continued to battle for the equaliser with Robert Sanchez drawn into making an impressive stop to keep out Richards.
Chelsea felt they should have had a penalty when Mitchell lunged in on Neto but after a brief VAR check, the challenge was cleared. Palace’s efforts were eventually rewarded though to claim a point that sees them move six points clear of the drop zone.
Chelsea, denied the chance to leapfrog Nottingham Forest, stay in fourth place.
Lack of belief costing Chelsea
Analysis by William Bitibiri at Selhurst Park:
“When Enzo Maresca says nobody expected Chelsea to be in a race for the title, he’s right. Levi Colwill echoed his manager’s feelings, downplaying their title acumen. Against Crystal Palace, we saw a Chelsea side cede control when they were in charge just like they’ve relented their short-lived title ambitions.
“The festive period can prove challenging for most sides but it ended a run of 12 unbeaten as things were beginning to click under Maresca. However, despite being as high as second before their drop-off, both players and manager refused to be drawn about a fight for the title.
“Maybe they are not in a hunt for the title but for sure, now Chelsea believe they’re not. The freedom and expression Chelsea were playing with has gone out of the window after seemingly taking their foot off the gas. It seems now they are withering from a lack of belief in themselves, reflected in an abject festive run.”
Glasner: Munoz performance sparked us
Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner:
“I think it’s a deserved point. We were struggling, especially in the first 30 minutes. Chelsea were clearly the better team. We were too passive, lost the balls too quickly and the pressure increased until we were 1-0 down. I think already at the end of the first half we did better, playing more in the half.
“Daniel Munoz, especially in the second half, with his runs… I think before the goal it was the fourth or fifth ball he was winning in the opposite half. With his passion, his intensity and his playing, he is very important to us.
“But in the end, we can just draw against Chelsea if the whole team is performing well. This is what we did, especially in the last 60 minutes.”
Maresca: We did enough to win
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca:
“Probably we did enough to win the game today. Between the first half and second half, I think we created chances enough to win the game.
“But in football you need to be clinical otherwise the game is always open, especially in this stadium. Any transition, any corner boosts the energy for them. Unfortunately in the end we conceded but overall I think today we did enough to win the game.
On Josh Acheampong’s debut:
“All the players were good today but if I had to decide for one, Josh was the best player. He can be a top player for this club. We decided today because we saw he was ready. Today he showed how good he is.
“Even if we don’t decide to buy players or sell players, we already knew Josh was good enough. But with Benoit [Badiashile] and Wesley [Fofana]’s injuries, we will see if something can happen.”
