The race of Champions League football continues on Tuesday when Crystal Palace welcome Chelsea to Selhurst Park. With Manchester United's superb form since the restart inching them closer to a top four finish and Leicester dropping points left, right and centre, Chelsea will have one eye over their shoulder and one firmly looking forward when they take on Roy Hodgson's men.
Palace have struggled following the restart, losing three of their four games back and have tumbled down to 13th in the Premier League.
Chelsea's form since the football's return has been largely positive, winning four of their first five games, but with Manchester United closing the gap between between the two sides quickly, the Blues will desperately need all three points on Tuesday.
How to Watch
When is Kick Off? Tuesday 7 July
What Time is Kick Off? 18:00 (BST)
Where is it Played? Selhurst Park
TV Channel/Live Stream? Sky Sports (UK), fuboTV (US)
Referee? David Coote
Team News
Palace will be without three defenders for the Chelsea game, with Martin Kelly, Jeffrey Schlupp and James Tomkins all out indefinitely with injuries.
Chelsea will be without Fikayo Tomori and Mateo Kovacic for the game, with both men gearing up for potential returns on 11 July, and Frank Lampard admitted on Saturday that N'Golo Kante looks likely to miss out with a knock.
Predicted Lineups
Crystal Palace: Guaita; Ward, Cahill, Sakho, van Aanholt; McArthur, Milivojevic, McCarthy; Townsend, Ayew, Zaha.
Chelsea: Kepa; James, Christensen, Zouma, Azpilicueta; Barkley, Kante, Mount; Willian, Abraham, Pulisic.
Recent Form
The Eagles have struggled following the Premier League's return in June, picking up just three points out of a possible twelve. Palace had already all but guaranteed another season in England's top flight, but Roy Hodgson's men have lost three games in row and will need to pick up points sooner rather than later if they're to enter next season with any positive momentum.
Chelsea's form has been solid for the most part since they returned to football, with a 2-1 win over Manchester City and a 3-0 win over Watford their best performances so far – but a chastening 3-2 defeat against West Ham just after defeating the reigning champions brought them down to earth with a bump.
Here's how both sides have looked over their last five games.
Crystal Palace
Leicester City 3-0 Crystal Palace (4/7)
Crystal Palace 0-1 Burnley (29/6)
Liverpool 4-0 Crystal Palace (24/6)
Bournemouth 0-2 Crystal Palace (20/6)
Crystal Palace 1-0 Watford (7/3)
Chelsea
Chelsea 3-0 Watford (4/7)
West Ham 3-2 Chelsea (1/7)
Leicester 0-1 Chelsea (28/6)
Chelsea 2-1 Manchester City (25/6)
Aston Villa 1-2 Chelsea (21/6)
Prediction
Frank Lampard's side will prove too much for Crystal Palace on Tuesday, the Blues securing all three points with ease. Palace's previously strong defence has let them down of late and the Eagles' attack has been one of the worst in the league. Couple those two together and you have a recipe for disaster.
Chelsea has shown they're prone to slipping up against sides in the bottom half of the table, but with Manchester United closing in on the Blues, they'll be at their best at Selhurst Park.
Prediction: Crystal Palace 0-3 Chelsea
Source : 90min