Premier League: Crystal Palace vs Chelsea – Betting Tips, Odds & Prediction

Monday morning NZT sees a classic London derby at Selhurst Park as a struggling Crystal Palace look to stop the rot against a Chelsea side that’s finally showing some consistency.

There’s a massive gulf between these two teams right now. Crystal Palace are crashing out after losing their skipper, while Chelsea are cruising under their new boss. I’ve spotted a play paying $3.50 that I’m personally jumping on, which I’ll break down in this Crystal Palace vs Chelsea preview.

Crystal Palace

Things are looking pretty grim for Crystal Palace at the moment.

They’re currently 13th and haven’t tasted victory in seven league matches. To make matters worse, they’ve just sold their captain, Marc Guehi, to Manchester City. It’s a massive blow for a defence that was already looking a bit iffy. With manager Oliver Glasner also set to leave at the end of the season, the wheels are somewhat falling off for Palace.

I’m worried about their lack of goals too - they’ve only got two in their last five games. Jean-Philippe Mateta is still a threat, but he’s looking lonely on that front. Unless they find a way to actually create some chances, I can’t see Palace bothering the visitors too much. You can check out the latest markets on various betting sites in NZ to see just how much of an underdog they’ve become.

Team News: Chiek Doucoure, Daichi Kamada, and Daniel Munoz are all sidelined with injuries.

Predicted Lineup: Henderson; Richards, Lacroix, Lerma; Devenny, Wharton, Hughes, Mitchell; Johnson, Pino; Mateta.

Chelsea

Chelsea are looking like a team revived since Liam Rosenior took the reins.

They’ve won three of their first four under the new manager, including a solid 2-0 win over Brentford which has them sitting in sixth and in the hunt for a top-four spot. What I like is the way they’re controlling games now. Cole Palmer is still the main man, but the whole team is a lot more balanced and disciplined than they were a few months ago.

Chelsea have been decent on the road lately. Their attack is firing at the moment too, having scored in a league-high 20 games this season. They’ll likely dominate possession and try to pick Crystal Palace apart through the middle. If you’re hunting for football betting tips this weekend, an away win looks like the most sensible starting point.

Team News: Mykhaylo Mudryk is suspended. Levi Colwill and Romeo Lavia remain out through injury.

Predicted Lineup: Sanchez; James, Chalobah, Acheampong, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Neto, Palmer, Garnacho; Joao Pedro.

• Crystal Palace are winless in their last 17 matches against Chelsea.
• Chelsea have scored in 20 different Premier League matches this season, more than any other side.
• Crystal Palace have only earned one league point after conceding the first goal this season.
• Chelsea have won three of their last four matches since appointing a new manager.

I’m finding it impossible to tip anything other than a Chelsea win here.

Crystal Palace are a club in transition and missing their best defender, while Chelsea are on a high and looking really settled. I expect the visitors to grab the lead early and never really look back. Crystal Palace might get a few chances on the break, but I don’t think they have the quality to finish many of them against a Chelsea defence that’s only conceded once in their last two outings.

It might get a bit scrappy because it’s a derby, but the visitors have too much firepower for this to be genuinely competitive for the full 90. I’m predicting a 2-1 victory for Chelsea. If you’ve got free sports bet promotions to use, a straightforward away win is the way I’m leaning.

Chelsea to Win and Both Teams to Score @ $3.50

This is the value play for me this Monday morning.

While I’m confident Chelsea will win, they do have a habit of switching off and letting in a soft goal late on. Crystal Palace are desperate and will probably throw everything at them in the final 20 minutes. Mateta is always capable of nabbing one, even if his team is being outplayed.

I can see a scenario where Chelsea go 2-0 up and then concede a late consolation. At $3.50 with Bet and Play, it’s a much better price than just taking Chelsea on their own.