Crystal Palace manager, Tony Pulis, will be hoping to lift his side out of the relegation zone with a victory over London rivals Chelsea.
The two sides haven’t met in the Premier League since 2005 in which Frank Lampard was among the goal scorers in a 4-1 victory for the Blues. Palace go to Stamford Bridge off the back of two straight wins in the Premier League, beating West Ham and Cardiff along the way.
Chelsea go into the fixture after a midweek 1-0 win over Steaua Bucharest in the Champions League, in which they secured top spot in the group. However, Jose Mourinho will be looking for a reaction from his players in the Premier League after having seen his side defeated 3-2 away at Stoke last weekend. Chelsea will take hope from the fact that they have only dropped two points at home all season, whereas Crystal Palace have lost six of their last seven league games away from home.
Chelsea Goalkeeper, Petr Cech, is likely to return to the starting line-up after Mark Schwarzer was handed his Champions League debut in midweek. Midfielder Marco Van Ginkel (knee) is currently Chelsea's only absentee. For Palace, Dean Moxey will undergo a fitness test after sustaining a hamstring injury against Cardiff, but Jerome Thomas (groin), Jack Hunt (ankle), Adlene Guedioura (ribs) and Glenn Murray (knee) are all side-lined.
Chelsea have gained more points from losing positions than any other team in the Premier League this season (11). Chelsea inflicted Tony Pulis’ heaviest ever defeat as a Premier League coach - 0-7 versus Stoke City in April 2010 at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea have won seven and lost none of their last 11 league meetings with Crystal Palace (D4). Chelsea have already conceded more Premier League goals (17) than they did in the whole of Jose Mourinho's debut season in 2004-05 (15).
Crystal Palace have averaged just 0.93 points per game in Premier League London derbies, only Fulham (0.91) have a lower return of clubs from the capital. The Blues have kept just one clean sheet in their last 10 Premier League matches.The Eagles have scored just six goals in their last 12 Premier League games. Mile Jedinak has made more interceptions than any other Premier League player this season (50). Marouane Chamakh has scored in back to back Premier League appearances for the first time since November 2010. He has never scored in three successive PL apps. Crystal Palace have kept four clean sheets in their last five Premier League matches.
