Crystal Palace and Chelsea face off in a London derby on Tuesday evening with five rounds of the Premier League season remaining.
Chelsea looks in good shape to qualify for the Champions League, with Frank Lampard’s Blues sitting fourth in the table and a point off third-placed Leicester City.
As for their opponents, Roy Hodgson’s  Eagles were dreaming of Europe until a run of three straight defeats saw them tumble to 14th place – and while the threat of relegation is over, the south London club needs a strong finish to the campaign.
With Palace losing three on the spin, Chelsea will fancy their chances. The visitors should pick up three points but Lampard’s side have struggled for consistency this term, so it could be closer than first thought.
TEAM NEWS
Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson must weigh up whether to recall Cheikhou Kouyate, Scott Dann, and James McCarthy after they were rested at Leicester.
Injured trio James Tomkins, Jeffrey Schlupp, and Martin Kelly are again expected to miss out.
Chelsea is likely to be without N’Golo Kante after he suffered a hamstring injury at the weekend.
Fellow midfielder Mateo Kovacic and defender Fikayo Tomori remain on the sidelines.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Chelsea has won their last four games against Crystal Palace, including a 2-0 victory in November’s reverse fixtures.
Palace has recorded just four victories in 21 previous Premier League matches against the Blues (D2, L15).
The Eagles’ first league win under Roy Hodgson was a 2-1 home victory over Chelsea in October 2017.
Crystal Palace
Palace has lost three consecutive games by an aggregate score of 8-0, having previously managed four straight wins without conceding.
The Eagles could fail to score in four successive league matches for the first time under Roy Hodgson.
Palace has won just three of their past eight home league fixtures (D2, L3).
They have not recorded a draw in 10 league outings (W4, L6).
The Eagles are the only side yet to score more than twice in a Premier League game this season.
Hodgson’s men have recorded just two league wins this season against teams currently in the top half of the table.
Since the restart, ex-Chelsea center-back Gary Cahill has had more shots on target than any other Palace player, registering three of their seven attempts on goal.
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Chelsea
Chelsea has won four of their last five league games, as many victories as they managed in their previous 13 fixtures.
The Blues have accrued 27 points in away matches this term, with only Liverpool and Manchester City gaining more.
They have scored 33 away goals, the division’s second-highest tally, whereas opponents Palace have netted a league-low 12 home goals.
Frank Lampard’s side has kept just one Premier League clean sheet away from home this term.
Chelsea has scored two goals or more in nine of their last 10 top-flight fixtures.
Willian has scored six goals in his last seven appearances in league and cup.
Olivier Giroud has scored four goals in his last seven league games.
Ross Barkley has been directly involved in eight goals in his last 10 starts in all competitions, scoring three and assisting five.
