McCarthy goes into the book for a foul on Kovacic 25 yards from goal. It's in a central position and Willian will line up the strike.
90' +1
BLOCK! Kante lifts the ball into the middle for Batshuayi and he goes for the strike on the turn, but Kelly deflects his attempt wide of the target.
90'
There will be four minutes of added time.
88'
WIDE! Hudson-Odoi surges forward and cuts across the pitch to fire a low strike towards goal, but his effort trickles past the right-hand post.
87'
B. Gilmour enters the game and replaces M. Mount.
Gilmour comes on to the pitch for Mount.
84'
Chelsea are in complete control now. The second goal was crucial for Lampard's men to re-affirm their grasp of proceedings just when it appeared Palace were gaining a foothold.
82'
J. McCarthy enters the game and replaces C. Kouyaté.
McCarthy comes on for Kouyate for the closing stages of the contest.
80'
C. Hudson-Odoi enters the game and replaces C. Pulišić.
Pulisic scores with his final touch as he makes way for Hudson-Odoi.
79'
C. Pulišić has scored a goal for Chelsea!
GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!! PULISIC HEADS HOME!!!! 2-0!!!! Chelsea secure the vital second goal as the American converts from close range. He collects a long pass from Zouma out from the back and runs at the Palace backline. Pulisic offloads into the feet of Batshuayi, who turns and fires at goal. His effort is deflected towards the net and Pulisic pounces to race on to the loose ball to nod home.
Minute
Description
76'
Chelsea have space on the break, creating two opening in the space of a minute. First Mount collects Willian's offload and sees his strike from the edge of the box blocked by Tomkins. Emerson then charges down the left flank and fires the ball across the face of goal, forcing Guaita to turn it past the post.
75'
The visitors are edging their way back into the contest. They've had one good opportunity that Tomkins failed to convert, but they are growing in confidence in possession.
73'
M. Batshuayi enters the game and replaces T. Abraham.
Abraham is withdrawn for Batshuayi in the final third.
70'
J. Schlupp enters the game and replaces J. McArthur.
Schlupp replaces McArthur for the visitors.
69'
Abraham is casual in chasing down the ball as it trickles towards the sideline. Tomkins does well to keep it alive and Palace work their way out from the back. The move results in Townsend winning a free-kick down the right flank from a challenge by Tomori.
67'
Chelsea build down the left and Pulisic cuts inside to shoot on his right foot, only to blaze his effort over the bar. The American should at least have been testing Guaita there.
66'
Kepa plays out a poor pass out from the back and Milivojevic steals possession for the visitors. He offloads to Townsend in space in the right inside channel, but he overhits his cross to the back post for Zaha.
65'
Zaha probes again down the left flank and he cuts back to lift a cross into the box, but it sails over the head of McArthur rushing in at the back post.
63'
Van Aanholt and Zaha combine down the left flank, but Zouma stops the progress of the latter in the box with a well-timed challenge.
60'
McArthur gives the ball straight to Kante on the edge of the box. However, the Frenchman passes up the opportunity to fire at goal, instead offloading towards Willian. His pass is slightly wayward and the opening is spurned.
55'
Chelsea almost switch off at the back and Kouyate is teed up by Van Aanholt, but he sees his effort charged down by Tomori in the box.
54'
Chelsea are straight on the attack once again as Mount wins possession in the Palace half. He lines up a strike at goal that hits Tomkins and almost falls for Abraham in the box. However, Cahill acts ahead of the forward to clear into touch.
52'
T. Abraham has scored a goal for Chelsea! Assist by Willian.
Willian sticks out a leg to divert a pass through to Abraham, who does the rest with a fine finish.
GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!! ABRAHAM POUNCES!!! 1-0 CHELSEA!!!! The Blues take the lead as Abraham finishes with composure inside the box, placing his right-footed shot into the right-bottom corner. Willian steers a pass from Kante towards the run of the forward, who wheels off the back of his man. He collects and finishes the move by beating Guaita to notch his 11th goal of the campaign.
50'
Emerson makes a good run behind the Palace backline down the left flank, but the pass from Kante is ahead of him and goes out for a goal-kick.
48'
James' cross deflects off Mount towards Abraham, who latches on to the ball in the right inside channel. However, the offside flag is raised against the forward as he blazes a shot wide.
46'
We're back underway at Stamford Bridge.
45' +4
HALF-TIME: CHELSEA 0-0 CRYSTAL PALACE
45' +3
OVER! James tees up Kante to send a cross into the box for Pulisic to attack, but the American can only guide his header over the bar.
Kepa sells Zouma short at the back and the defender almost loses out Zaha, but the Palace man is overzealous with his attempt to win possession, giving away a free-kick.
45' +2
Kovacic goes down under pressure from Ayew to win a free-kick. There have been no shortage of free-kicks in the first half.
45'
There will be four minutes of added time.
44'
M. Kelly enters the game and replaces J. Ward.
Kelly replaces Ward, who has to make way for the Eagles at right-back.
43'
Willian collects a clearance from a corner on the left flank. The Brazilian lines up a strike from 25 yards, which takes a huge deflection off Kouyate. It loops into the air and sails towards goal, but Guaita retains his concentration to make the save.
40'
Chelsea win a free-kick down the right flank, but Willian overhits his delivery into the middle, while Emerson was offside at the back post anyway.
38'
Abraham turns with menace on the edge of the box, only to be denied by a fine covering challenge by Kouyate.
37'
Kovacic makes a probing run from the middle of the park down the left inside channel, but his low cross is cleared away by the Palace backline.
35'
Chelsea have lost their rhythm from the early stages of the contest. They're perhaps a tad frustrated that their pressure has not yielded the opening goal.
33'
M. Kovačić gets yellow.
Kovacic brings down Townsend on the charge and goes into the book.
32'
Milivojevic whips the ball in with power towards the back post, but it does not have the accuracy, travelling wide of the target.
31'
Emerson gets yellow.
Emerson goes into the book for wiping out Townsend earlier in the Palace attacking move.
Zaha gets into the action for the first time of the contest and he wins a free-kick for a challenge by James. The set-piece is on the left edge of the penalty area.
28'
Mount wins a free-kick on the edge of the box amid pressure from Milivojevic. The set-piece is dead centre and Mount will line up the effort himself.
27'
Pulisic twists and turns in the final third and he offloads towards Kante to strike. The Frenchman connects, but he sees his effort charged down by a crowd of white shirts.
25'
Milivojevic almost gets himself in a tangle on the edge of his own box, but the Eagles are just able to bring it away before Abraham can pounce.
21'
W. Zaha gets yellow.
Zaha clips the ankles of Willian and goes into the book. Chelsea have another free-kick in a dangerous position.
20'
Mount and Pulisic attempt to combine in the Palace box, but on this occasion the American takes one touch too many and loses out under pressure from three defenders.
17'
Willian gets yellow.
Willian takes one for the team for the home side as he bundles over Ayew on a counter down the right flank.
16'
Tomori whips the ball out to Emerson on the left flank and the full-back wins a corner off the body of Ward. Chelsea are exerting pressure in the early stages of the game.
13'
James cuts infield and he draws a loose leg from McArthur 25 yards from goal, winning a free-kick for the Blues.
11'
Mount tries to curl a cross into the box, but it's a simple one for Cahill to deal with, heading it away from the penalty area with ease.
10'
Mount wins possession from Kouyate, but then gets clipped by Milivojevic. Chelsea earn a free-kick in a dangerous position.
9'
Willian runs at the Palace defence down the right flank, getting the better of Van Aanholt. However, McArthur is there to clear the danger from the low cross behind for a corner.
7'
Pulisic collects on the left flank and cuts inside to shoot from the edge of the box, only to pull his effort harmlessly wide of the target.
5'
Kovacic makes a good tackle to stop Townsend in his tracks, but his long ball over the top to release Pulisic goes out for a throw-in.
3'
Chelsea have settled into an early rhythm and are looking to force the Eagles back towards their own goal.
1'
We're underway at Stamford Bridge.
James continues to probe down the right for the hosts and he whips a dangerous cross to the back post that Guaita has to tip past the post.
Chelsea are on the attack immediately through Willian. The Brazilian offloads to Pulisic, who in turn finds Mount in the right inside channel. However, the midfielder sees his drive at goal blocked by Cahill.
After a run of decent form shifted them into the top half of the table, Palace have come unstuck in recent weeks. Roy Hodgson's men are on a three-match winless run, suffering defeats at the hands of Manchester City and Leicester City. They fought back to draw against Arsenal two weeks ago, but they've not been able to raise their game against the elite sides in the division. Chelsea will provide another stern test for them ths afternoon.
Chelsea return to Premier League action after the dramatic exploits of their Champions League match against Ajax during the week. Frank Lampard's men rallied from a 4-1 deficit to earn a drawn against the Dutch outfit who were reduced to nine men, keeping the club on course for qualification to the next round of the competition. In the Premier League, the Blues have reeled off five wins on the bounce and another over the Eagles would propel them into second place above Manchester City, who play Liverpool tomorrow.
Good afternoon and welcome to the live commentary of the Premier League clash between Chelsea and Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge.
CHELSEA (4-2-3-1): Kepa Arrizabalaga; Reece James, Fikayo Tomori, Kurt Zouma, Emerson; N'Golo Kante, Mateo Kovacic; Willian, Mason Mount, Christian Pulisic, Tammy Abraham.
CHELSEA SUBS: Andreas Christensen, Willy Caballero, Olivier Giroud, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Michy Batshuayi, Cesar Azpilicueta, Billy Gilmour.
CRYSTAL PALACE (4-5-1): Vicente Guaita; Joel Ward, James Tomkins, Gary Cahill, Patrick van Aanholt; Andros Townsend, Cheikhou Kouyate, Luka Milivojevic, James McArthur, Wilfried Zaha; Jordan Ayew.
CRYSTAL PALACE SUBS: Scott Dann, Wayne Hennessey, Jordan Schlupp, Christian Benteke, James McCarthy, Martin Kelly, Jairo Riedewald.
Frank Lampard will be frustrated by his side's lack of cutting edge in the final third today. They've been decent in their approach play, but the quality in and around the box has been lacking from the Blues. The home side have just been a little bit tentative, but they have dominated possession and it would be surprising to see them shut out this afternoon. Patience is required from Chelsea in the second half.
Chelsea are next in action after the international break on November 23 away to Manchester City, while Palace play the same day at home to Liverpool.
Thanks for joining our commentary this afternoon. Until next time, goodbye.
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