Chelsea appears to be ready for its Premier League opener on Sunday, August 17, when it faces Crystal Palace. The Blues are coming into a new season as Champions League winners and they look to keep up its successful play.
It’s possible that Chelsea fans will get their first look at Joao Pedro and Estevao Willian on the pitch.The Blues also might have Wesley Fofana out there, too. But don’t expect Benoit Badiashile and Romeo Lavia to see time against Crystal Palace.
Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time at Stamford Bridge in London. For fans in the United States, kickoff is at 9 a.m. Eastern and 6 a.m. Pacific.
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca isn’t expecting this opener against Crystal Palace to be any sort of a cakewalk. He knows that the Blues’ opponent has hopes of knocking Chelsea down a peg or two.
"It will be very, very difficult," Maresca said, according to Sports Illustrated. "It has been the Community Shield, it has been the FA Cup against City. They beat in two finals, probably the two best teams in the last 10 to 15 years in England, Man City and Liverpool. It will show how competitive we will be on Sunday."
For Maresca, he might not have much to worry about. Chelsea has won 20 openers in Premier League play, which is a pretty good total.
Crystal City manager Oliver Glasner isn’t going into Sunday’s opener blind to the fact that Chelsea has had an incredible run of success.
"We are facing the club world champions," Glasner said. "They played a fantastic tournament, especially the final. I watched it live. It was a really fantastic performance by them.
"They added a few players,” he said..”They were a great team. They are a great team. They have a fantastic manager with Enzo Maresca. A clear style of playing. This is what we want. It's exactly these games. I think it's one of the best season openers we could have."
Chelsea and Crystal City fans will want to tune in to see how this Premier League opener pans out. For fans in the United Kingdom, they can watch it on Sky Sports Main Event. In the United States, there are a few different options. This Premier League opener can be seen on USA Network, Telemundo, nbcsports.com, and fuboTV. As for apps, fans can watch the match on the NBC Sports App.