A second consecutive loss on the road dented Chelsea’s title hopes even further, as a frustrating afternoon at Selhurst Park saw Crystal Palace take all three points.
An own goal from Chelsea’s captain John Terry was enough to seal a huge three points for Tony Pulis’ side in the battle to avoid relegation.
Both Liverpool and Manchester City can go above Chelsea this weekend, with the latter still having games in hand on Mourinho’s men.
Chelsea never got going in a game where Crystal Palace deserved their victory following some dogged defending to further diminish Chelsea’s dwindling hopes of winning the Premier League.
Chelsea lined up with Fernando Torres in the absence of Samuel Eto’o, and had a three man midfield of Lampard, Matic and Luiz which failed to dominate the opponent, contrary to we saw last week against Arsenal.
Andre Schurrle maintained his place in the side alongside Eden Hazard in a formation which appeared to maintain a 4-1-2-3 shape.
The first half failed to take off with neither goalkeeper being tested to the best of their abilities, and Crystal Palace staying solid as they looked to frustrate Chelsea.
Tony Pulis’ side picked up an array of bookings following a string of late challenges, which forced David Luiz to come off at half time following Yannick Bolasie’s poor attempt at winning the ball.
Chelsea replaced the injured David Luiz with Oscar at the break but he failed to link up with Hazard and Schurrle as Chelsea lacked a definitive touch in the area to trouble Julian Speroni in the Palace net.
Just 7 minutes into the half, John Terry connected with Joel Ward’s cross but unfortunately for the Chelsea legend, Petr Cech was caught out by the cross which he planned to collect, and the ball rolled in for a JT own goal.
It was all Chelsea from here on in, apart from a chance with Cameron Jerome smacked against the post. Eden Hazard was denied by a brilliant Speroni save which saw Chelsea’s best chance of the game go a begging.
Despite their possessional dominance, Chelsea failed to make it count despite bringing on Mohamad Salah and Demba Ba in an attempt to salvage a point from a game that Chelsea fans were expecting all three from.
A final chance went begging as O’Keefe’s back pass sold Speroni short but Fernando Torres failed to capitalise, lobbing the ball over the bar.
The game finished 1-0 to the home side, which left them 5 points clear of the relegation zone, and the media and fans alike were left to reflect on the truth in Mourinho’s earlier-season comments that Chelsea were not title favourites.
Indeed, during post-match the Chelsea boss declared his side out of the title race:
“I know mathematically it is still possible to win the league but we now depend too much on other results. I think now we’ve lost any chance of finishing first.”
In a display of poor performances all over the pitch, it was clear that Chelsea missed Samuel Eto’o as Fernando Torres failed to deliver upfront.
Who was your Chelsea man of the match?
If rumours are the be believed, Mourinho was said to enter Palace’s changing room and congratulate the side, and the boss was very complimentary of today’s opponents during post-match, as well as cursing his sides inability in front of goal:
“We could have scored in the first half and had chances to equalise but it’s fair to say Palace deserved it.”
Chelsea have little time to feel sorry for themselves as the squad now prepare for Wednesday night’s clash away to PSG as they look to start progress to the Champions League semi-final.
In terms of the Premier League, Chelsea will have to hope Manchester City can drop 7 points in their remaining games if they are to have any hope of winning the silverware.
The sides’s next league game is at home to Stoke City, which can be seen live on Sky Sports, as can all of Chelsea’s other games in April.
Crystal Palace vs Chelsea: Post-match facts
- This is the first time that Crystal Palace have ever beaten a side placed at the top of the PL table
- Crystal Palace completed 60 clearances during the course of the game, Chelsea just 34
- No keeper has made more saves in the PL this season that Julian Speroni (213)
- Chelsea managed just 2 shots on target during the game (10 overall)
- John Terry’s own goal today was the first Chelsea have scored all season
