Preview
Eighty-three days on from the final outing of the 2020/21 campaign against Liverpool, the Eagles kick-off 2021/22 with a trip to Stamford Bridge to face the UEFA Champions League and Super Cup winners Chelsea.
Palace come into the fixture in great form after capping off an unbeaten pre-season with a 3-1 victory over newly promoted Watford. Wilfried Zaha has been in particularly fine form, scoring in every game he has featured in, while youngsters Scott Banks and Jesurun Rak-Sakyi have been getting on the scoresheets as they look to break into the first-team.
Chelsea have also had an unbeaten, albeit shorter, pre-season, recording victories over AFC Bournemouth, Arsenal and most recently against Villarreal in the Super Cup.
The Blues have been in phenomenal form since appointing Thomas Tuchel as manager in January 2021, with 19 wins in 31 games across all competitions.