Why Chelsea’s win at Crystal Palace was a benchmark performance

After the West Brom disaster last week it was imperative that Chelsea hit the ground running at Selhurst Park.

After a scintillating opening ten minutes that put them 0-2 up and firmly in the driving seat, the Blues never looked back.

Despite coming against a poor Crystal Palace side, the first half was a benchmark attacking performance. One to be referred back to when confidence is low. A statement of intent for sure.

Thomas Tuchel has talked a lot about precision since arriving in West London and that’s exactly what Chelsea showed against Palace. They maintained a 90% passing accuracy, compared to their 85% against West Brom.

More from Chelsea

• “600 days” Fans make SHOCK Chelsea revelation – They really are poor
• Chelsea injury news: Most expensive midfielder is a doubt vs Aston Villa
• Chelsea: Mauricio Pochettino mandates a “ridiculous offer” to sell defender
• When should Chelsea start to panic about Mauricio Pochettino?
• Chelsea: HUGE boost as Pochettino starts “world-class” midfielder today

That may not seem like a huge difference, but anyone who watched the embarrassment at the Bridge last week can vouch for the sloppiness on the ball the home side demonstrated. This was chalk and cheese.

These weren’t just passes played for passes sake either. In the first half alone Chelsea made 124 passes into the final third.

They were penetrative and imaginative going forwarded, spearheaded by their marquee summer signing Kai Havertz.

Some of the German’s touches were sublime and if he can add a more clinical edge to his game then Chelsea’s search for a world-class striker may be over before it’s truly begun.

Havertz was asked about playing the false 9 role after the game by Sky Sports and had this to say:

"I am happy. I think the most important thing is that we won. After the 5-2 defeat, it’s a good game from us. In my position you always want to score.I like the position, I think it’s good for me, I have the freedom to go everywhere I want to go."

Evaluating Chelsea’s offensive masterclass against Crystal Palace

When evaluating this offensive masterclass, it would be easy to ignore the immense amount of work that went in off the ball. An effective and co-ordinated pressing game is ingrained into Tuchel’s DNA and it was on full display here.

Mason Mount was his usual effervescent self, but Jorginho also deserves credit for the energy and experience he displayed in the press. Chelsea managed 20 tackles and made 12 fouls, several of which were intelligent, tactical and stopped any possible counter-attacks.

Even Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson identified the Chelsea press as a key aspect of their attacking play in the first half.

This Chelsea performance has to be considered in context. Tuchel would have expected a response from the Baggies debacle and Palace were briefly allowed back in the game after their goal in the second half.

Chelsea’s defence still looks vulnerable when teams press them on the ball, so there are clearly areas to work on.

Nevertheless, if the Blues can emulate their first-half performance in other games, then Chelsea fans can begin to dream.