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How Chelsea have performed on last five opening days as Crystal Palace eye Premier League revenge

Chelsea are just over a week away from returning to actionplaceholder image

Chelsea are just over a week away from returning to action | Manchester United via Getty Imag

Chelsea have enjoyed a successful summer, but how successful have they been on matchday 1 in the Premier League?

The only team that can lay claim to being as confident as Liverpool heading into the new season is Chelsea with Enzo Maresca securing major silverware in his first year.

A decent start to his tenure at Stamford Bridge was followed by a dip in form but one loss in the last nine league games followed by success in the Europa Conference League and Club World Cup suggests that momentum is now on his side.

What the Blues boss also has on his side is that he has been able to add the missing pieces of the jigsaw from a squad that was already loaded. The impact that Liam Delap and Joao Pedro made in the USA is an exciting prospect for the season ahead.

Chelsea v Crystal Palace sees a familiar opening day fixture

That Chelsea paid a similar amount for the two forwards as Manchester United are paying for Benjamin Sesko shows the benefit of getting new players in early, rather than being held to ransom as the season approaches. The £30m for Delap at 2025 prices could prove to be a rare bargain in the modern era. Another aspect that makes them smart signings is that both of them are proven in the Premier League and as low risk as could be found.

Chelsea’s opening game is a repeat of the 2021/22 campaign and, on paper, is a lot easier than the last two years in which early points have been dropped. Man City last season and Liverpool the season before are as tough a task as there is, but on the 17th of August, the Crystal Palace who won the FA Cup could be considerably weaker.

How Chelsea have performed in last five opening days as Palace fear the worst

Newcastle are reported to have joined the race for Marc Guehi which might lead to Liverpool making a concrete offer having been linked to the Eagles skipper all summer. The England international has just one year left on his current deal and there is every chance that he isn’t in Palace’s starting XI on the opening day. It is a similar story for Eberechi Eze who has interest from Arsenal and Spurs. Two key players who will be difficult to replace.

Up until the last two seasons, Chelsea enjoyed a strong run of opening day wins in the last five years with two away wins and one 3-0 win over Palace. A league can’t be won or lost on the first day, but with all of the title contenders strengthening and spending a lot of money, it could be the sort of season where every point matters.

Chelsea 0 – 2 Man City

Chelsea 1 –1 Liverpool

Everton 0 – 1 Chelsea

Chelsea 3 – 0 Crystal Palace

Brighton 1 – 3 Chelsea

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