Chelsea vs Crystal Palace
Top-flight football returns to Stamford Bridge this weekend when Crystal Palace make the short trip to West London to face title hopefuls Chelsea.
The Blues’ last competitive match was their UEFA Super Cup victory over Villarreal and head coach Thomas Tuchel would dearly love to add the English title to his Champions League crown.
His team will open their campaign against a club in transition with the oldest set of players from the 2020/21 season, who have a new head coach and a big test ahead.
Yes, this Premier League match between Chelsea and Crystal Palace sees two teams who are very likely to finish the season in different halves of the table and the pre-match Premier League 2021 betting odds place the Blues as red-hot favourites at odds of 1.26 to win this opener.
So let’s take a look at the latest news from each camp and see if that’s the case.
Talking Points
Lukaku set to bolster Blues’ attack
At odds of 6.50 to win the league, Chelsea are the third favourites here at SBOTOP to lift the 2021/22 Premier League title and their head coach, who was recruited just over six months ago, is full of belief.
Thomas Tuchel has had more success against Manchester City than any of the league champions’ other rivals, beating them in the league and again in the Champions League final.
With Jack Grealish signing for the Sky Blues, Pep Guardiola has put down a challenge and Tuchel looks set to respond in kind. Speculation that Romelu Lukaku is about to rejoin the Blues seems to be turning to reality after the Belgian was reported to be in London to finalise a move to bring him back to Stamford Bridge from Inter Milan in a deal worth close to £100-M.
That will be a real state of intent as the big striker is one of the most prolific goal scorers in domestic and international football and he brings star quality to Chelsea’s young side, which is already full of potential.
Last summer’s big recruit Timo Werner struggled to score goals but he worked tirelessly and will benefit from Lukaku’s arrival while Kai Havertz improved as the season went on.
Whether Chelsea will meet the Friday 12 noon deadline to allow Lukaku to face the Eagles remains to be seen, but these are exciting times for Blues fans.
Can new money save the Eagles?
Crystal Palace supporters face a more worrying few months as they wait to see which way their season is likely to turn.
The Eagles are at odds of 2.60 to beat the drop which are fourth favourites for a bottom three place and if you offered their fans 17th place right now, then a good number might just bite your hands off.
Head coach Roy Hodgson, who worked miracles to keep an aging squad in the top division quite comfortably, has departed to be replaced by a managerial novice.
And talisman Wilfried Zaha can’t be relied on to carry the team as he so often has. When the Ivorian winger is injured, the Eagles falter. Meanwhile, at the back, the loss of Gary Cahill leaves a big hole.
New head coach Patrick Viera may have more money to spend following the Premier League 2021 news that US businessman John Textor has joined the board, bringing with him an investment in the region of £90-M.
The club’s Academy has been upgraded and Viera might now hope to add to new recruits Joachim Anderson, who was signed from relegated Fulham, and Chelsea loanee Conor Gallagher who spent last season at West Brom – a club that were also relegated to the Championship.
Palace have won four of their five warm-up games including a 3-1 victory over Watford, but they haven’t faced any sides from last season’s Premier League lineup.
Viera is unproven as a head coach, sacked after a run of five consecutive defeats in his first managerial appointment at Ligue 1 club Nice. But he knows London and the Premier League well after a glittering playing career at Arsenal. It will be interesting to see how he fares in his second managerial job.
History
The Blues have dominated the head-to-heads, winning 18 of the 23 meetings in the Premier League era, drawing one and losing just four.
Last season, Chelsea were ruthless in these fixtures, winning 4-1 at Selhurst Park in April as Christian Pulisic scored twice and 4-0 in their home match when Italy star Jorginho bagged a brace.
Palace haven’t won any of their last seven meetings with Chelsea and they aren’t about to buck that trend on Saturday.
Betting Tip
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Chelsea vs Crystal Palace | Chelsea Asian Handicap -1.50 @ 1.89 |
| August 14, 22:00 (GMT+8) |
The draw is at odds of 4.84 and Crystal Palace at 11.56 to secure an opening day three points, but I can’t see anything other than a Chelsea win.
And if Lukaku plays, I reckon he’ll score.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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|---|---|---|---|
 = €20 (Highly confident) |
= €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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