Kai Havertz strikes to give Chelsea crucial win

Kai Havertz grabbed a much-needed winner for Chelsea as Graham Potter’s side ended a run of three consecutive defeats with a 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace in the Premier League.

The first-half was a thoroughly entertaining spectacle, it just lacked a goal and both sides tried their best to open the scoring.

Kepa Arrizabalaga had a busy opening 45 minutes, keeping out Tyrick Mitchell’s close-range volley and reacting quickly to tip over Michael Olise’s effort a moment later. At the opposite end, Guaita’s gloves were kept warm by Thiago Silva’s driven volley. 

Chelsea ought to have been ahead when Havertz met Hakim Ziyech’s cross before the Palace goalkeeper but couldn’t find the gaping net. The Blues went even closer when former Palace loanee Conor Gallagher rolled a pass across the face of goal but young wing-back Lewis Hall inexplicably failed to hit the target. 

Palace thought they had the opener on the stroke of half-time but Kepa somehow kept out Jeffrey Schlupp’s near-post flick-on

The halftime break gave Chelsea fans cheer as new signing Mykhaylo Mudryk was presented to the fans to lift their spirits.

The Blues were struggling for attacking fluency, Graham Potter brought on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in an attempt to spark the match into life, and within five minutes of his introduction, they were ahead.

Havertz atoned for an earlier miss, this time directing Hakim Ziyech’s cross beyond Vicente Guaita. He then had a chance to virtually wrap up the points with 10 minutes to play, but his close-range header at the back post somehow missed the target.

Ziyech finds form at the right time

Ziyech has been out of favour at Chelsea over the past 12 months but his performances for Morocco at the World Cup have provided him with a new lease of life. 

He has been given an opportunity by Graham Potter and he is taking advantage of it by creating chances and driving attacks expertly for the Blues.