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Crystal Palace vs Chelsea (PL) Sat 4th January 25 15:00 GMT

WhiteWall said:
Think that's a bit harsh. I thought Caicedo and Enzo were our best players actually. 
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Not saying Caicedo was poor, I think hes a great player, im my opinion he's asked to do to much with Enzo in midfield, who is a luxury player, don't rate Enzo, never have.

 
lack of legs in the final quarter  has cost us again, will we ever learn  when to sub players 

and how many times do we have to  watch the opposition  put crosses in  with out doing anything to stop it 

 
cfr95 said:
Once we lose control of a game we struggle to wrestle it back.

We're crying out for a proper DM to bring off the bench to help us see out games like this. Glad to see Lesley is finally getting minutes for Southampton, maybe he can fill that role in the squad for us when he comes back...
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But proper teams don't rely on their DMs to squeeze out wins. They get the opposition to open up by scoring against them. Then teams that win things have the ability to counter attack with clinical finishing to put the game to bed.

 
Could easily be down to seventh or possibly eighth (if we lose to Bournemouth by more then 4 goals)

 
A lot of stick for Jackson today which is understandable as he had another very poor game.  However it is delecting from a lot of other ropey performances.  Gusto was terrible today,    Cucurella lost Mateta more times than Essex girls lose their virginity, Enzo, once again, totally disappeared when we lost control of the game and obviously Palmer had a mare in terms of the equaliser.  

These lost points are not just on Jackson.  Lot more shouldering of blame for this one.

 
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We need to sign an elite striker. Jackson would be a good back up to someone like Osimhen. But he’s not good enough to lead the line on his own. It’s not just a question of taking chances, it’s also about being a focal point in the box. It would bring out the best in players like Sancho, Neto and Palmer if they had a top quality striker ahead of them. 

 
loz said:
A lot of stick for Jackson today which is understandable as he had another very poor game.  However it is delecting from a lot of other ropey performances.  Gusto was terrible today,    Cucurella lost Mateta more times than Essex girls lose their virginity, Enzo, once again, totally disappeared when we lost control of the game and obviously Palmer had a mare in terms of the equaliser.  

These lost points are not just on Jackson.  Lot more shouldering of blame for this one.
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Agreed but with an elite focal point up top and any one ortho of those chances would have got buried meaning that other poorer performances would not have had any major significance in the result.

 
BewareoftheDrog said:
Forgot this was today. Thought it was tomorrow. Missed it We drew. Quelle surprise 🙄

Should've checked really but I had a plank that was warping and I needed to watch it !! 
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You should have logged into this match day topic earlier then,  you could have watched a veritable forest full of planks warping as the game progressed and I'm not talking about the players 😉

 
Based on the first half we should have been 2 or 3 up and then seen out a win.

Having not done so we are lucky to end up with a point as Palace deserved to get a win, and Sanchez saved us again.

 
Seeing a lot of negativity from fellow fans, which is understandable but I absolutely don't get the calls to get rid of Maresca. We were not awful today, we were pretty good for large periods and should have scored at least a few more goals than we did and if that happened in the first half, the game is completely different and we likely win.

We are in a poor run now and it shows in the belief the players are playing with. We always knew we had a young team that doesn't manage games well and doesn't have a good defence - the last 4 games have shown us exactly that.

Have faith, my brothers and sisters. We are still a good team and have a lot of room to grow.

 
axman2526 said:
Based on the first half we should have been 2 or 3 up and then seen out a win.

Having not done so we are lucky to end up with a point as Palace deserved to get a win, and Sanchez saved us again.
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I get that we dropped 2 points but in what universe did Palace deserve to win that game. Yes we underwhelmed in the second half but we still had control of the game throughout.  Individual errors and inviting pressure on and increasing the atmosphere from the opposition stands is undermining the work that we do but our tactical naivety and mental weakness from the players.

 
Not a coincidence that this slump has coincided with the loss of Lavia alongside Caicedo. The problem is Maresca doesn’t trust the alternatives. Gallagher was sold to be replaced by KDH who doesn’t get a look in, while Veiga and Casedei are similarly not seen as worth the risk. While Fernandez seems to be at his best playing higher up the pitch.

Which has left Caicedo holding the fort in midfield and getting overrun. You can tell he was out on his feet after 70 mins because he was making uncharacteristic errors and getting caught in possession. It means we’re vulnerable at the back and with Jackson going through a lean spell, we’re not able to see games through the way we were at the beginning of the season. 

 
Surprised it was not mentioned, maybe as we want to protect him on his debut, but Josh Acheampongs header from the corner in the first half was an absolute sitter, and had that been anyone else who missed that they woild have got it in the neck for missing the target.

Best chance we had all game.

 
Us letting in that goal was pure Ange ball wasn't it?

I don't blame Palmer, or Sanchez for that matter. At one up if Palmer is receiving that ball on the halfway line the ONLY players thar should be advancing should be Sancho, Neto and Guiu. Enzo should be alongside Palmer and Caicedo behind, with the back 4 in position.

No excuses for a fast player like Gusto to be caught our by Eze, even less for Cucurella to allow a slow lump like Mateta past him. Neither of them should be pressing on when Palmer had the ball.

 
just said:
I'd say these were about right.

https://www.goal.com/en/lists/chelsea-player-ratings-crystal-palace-nicolas-jackson-jadon-sancho/blt29fb7dd0196a5458#cs36174164c2934d2e
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Yep, although I am not sure how Gusto warranted a 6 when compared to the ratings of others.

Comparing the narrative and the scores implies that plaudits are not given cheaply which I like.

I thought defensively we looked solid against a physically powerful opposition ( I would personally pick up Jackson and drive him to Selhurst in a swap deal for Mareta). I didn't like the continual misplaced passes from Gusto and the constant turning back and passing backwards, but then I have never really rated him.

Thought Caicedo and Fernandez played very well but were run into the ground.

But, I thought after a good first half Neto either got found out or faded heavily. Sancho looked dangerous throughout. Palmer has that elite element about him but with Jackson being BAU ot, more accurately SAU,  we don't make the most of our superiority so these additional forward players look ineffectual. Jackson frustrated me significantly,  not just because of his poor shooting, but his appalling spatial awareness.  Even the one he dragged past the post with his left foot, Neto was completely unmarked at the back post with an open goal.

I get that Jackson presses and we do need that from our striker, but he is so wasteful and error prone it prevents those other players from flourishing and showing their class.

 
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