A penalty in the 89th minute from substitute Noni Madueke handed Chelsea a hard-fought 2-1 victory at home against Crystal Palace in the Premier League, in a London derby between the two teams. Madueke was fouled by Eberechi Eze inside the penalty area. After referee Michael Salisbury initially allowed play to continue, he was called by VAR officials to review the incident and awarded the penalty.
Crystal Palace's Michael Olise displayed exceptional skill when he received a pass from Jordan Ayew, chesting it down unmarked at the far post and skillfully finding the net past Djordje Petrovic in first-half stoppage time. Olise's goal leveled the score after Chelsea had taken the lead in the 13th minute through forward Mykhailo Mudryk, who converted a low cross from Malo Gusto.
Mudryk looked lively in a first half that saw a strong performance from Chelsea at home. However, after the late goal and the break, Chelsea appeared to lose momentum. Crystal Palace's defense halted their opponent's attacks, and manager Mauricio Pochettino's team often relied on passing among three players outside the visiting team's penalty area.
Despite this, a goal for Chelsea by Nicolas Jackson in the 76th minute was disallowed for offside after a VAR review. Madueke told Amazon Prime, "I give credit to Crystal Palace; they played well and made it hard to break through. But I must also give credit to us, we deserved to win."
Chelsea has climbed into the top half of the table by mid-season, reaching tenth place, while Palace, who have not won a Premier League match in eight games, remain in fifteenth place.
