Football | Chelsea 0 - 0 Crystal Palace

Eze denied free-kick magic in Chelsea stalemate

Crystal Palace outshone Chelsea but saw Eberechi Eze’s stunning strike ruled out by a rare VAR call.

Author | Lewis W

Stadium | Stamford Bridge

Chelsea corner

Eberechi Eze was denied a stunning free-kick and what might have been a fitting farewell as Crystal Palace picked up a point at Chelsea.

A closer look at what happened

The 27-year-old midfielder, linked with a move to Tottenham, shook off fitness doubts to start at Stamford Bridge and curled home from 20 yards in the 13th minute. His strike was overturned by referee Darren England after a VAR check, with Marc Guehi deemed to have been too close to Chelsea’s wall.

The little-used rule, introduced in 2019, proved costly for Palace, who also squandered chances through Jean-Philippe Mateta and Maxence Lacroix after a promising start. Chelsea, still basking in their Club World Cup triumph against Paris St-Germain last month, looked flat in the first half.

Five debutants featured for Enzo Maresca’s side, including Estevao Willian, Liam Delap and Andrey Santos, whose introductions after the break provided the hosts with their best opportunities.

Palace, whose pre-season began before Chelsea’s 2024-25 campaign had even finished, face an anxious final fortnight of the transfer window, with Guehi and Eze both possible departures.

There was a fabulous atmosphere pre match at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea's attack misfires

Chelsea began with new signing Joao Pedro leading the line, Cole Palmer in support, Jamie Gittens on the left and Pedro Neto on the right, while Enzo Fernández added creativity from midfield.

Despite the array of attacking options, the hosts created little before half-time and might have fallen behind. In the second half, Estevão and Liam Delap were introduced from the bench as Enzo Maresca’s side chased a breakthrough, while Crystal Palace looked satisfied to leave with a point from a major away fixture.

The six forwards involved cost Chelsea close to £250m, not including the £107m spent on Fernández, yet the Blues produced only three shots on target, one fewer than Palace. Watching from the stands, Eden Hazard may have reflected on how often he had provided the spark they were lacking.

Chelsea can argue their attack requires time to settle after a short pre-season and another wave of new arrivals. Even so, this felt like a missed opportunity for Maresca’s side, who started the day buoyed by their Club World Cup and Conference League triumphs.

The atmosphere at Stamford Bridge was as loud as it has been since the pandemic, but the celebratory mood was not reflected in the performance. For now, supporters appear ready to remain patient with a team still taking shape.