The second FA Cup semi-final takes place at Wembley on Sunday between Chelsea and Crystal Palace. The winner will face Liverpool in the final after the Reds overcame Manchester City 3-2 at the same venue on Saturday.
Here's everything you need to know about the game between the two London clubs in the English capital.
What time is Chelsea v Crystal Palace kick-off?
Chelsea v Crystal Palace kicks off at 4.30pm on Sunday, April 17.
Is Chelsea v Crystal Palace on TV? Is it free and what about live streaming?
Yes, Chelsea v Crystal Palace is being broadcast live on terrestrial channel ITV. Coverage begins at 3.45pm. You can also live stream the action on ITV's Hub app.
What's the latest team news?
After Chelsea went the distance against Real Madrid in the Champions League in midweek, Thomas Tuchel is set to ring the changes for the Blues. Callum Hudson Odoi (Achilles) and Ben Chilwell are already ruled out, but Romelu Lukaku could come back into the first-team reckoning against the Eagles. Ross Barkley will be hoping to shake off illness to be considered for selection.
As for Palace, they will be without Nathan Ferguson (thigh) and Conor Gallagher (ineligible) but Tyrick Mitchell (calf), Michael Olise (ankle) and Will Hughes (knock) could all be back in the mix for the south Londoners.
What have the managers said?
Thomas Tuchel: "I had the chance to speak to Conor (Gallagher), and I could also see his frustration. We met some weeks ago, we met after the international break by coincidence, in a restaurant, and we had a chat, and the subject came up. And I apologised! Because I know how competitive he is and I know his character, I like him a lot and it was a pleasure to have him here in pre-season.
“We play to win the game, the rules were clear when we made the loan. I can totally understand the disappointment of Conor, but these were the rules when we made the loan and we don’t want to suffer from our rules.”
Patrick Vieira: "We are talking about top players, who've won Champions Leagues, won World Cups, European competitions. They are not going to have any kind of mental questioning about turning up or not.
"If we are thinking that mentally they will be disappointed about the Madrid game, or the Madrid game having an impact on them, that is the biggest mistake we can make.
"Those clubs, those players they aim to win something every year and of course the FA Cup is what's left on the table and they will do the maximum to try to win it."
What are the latest betting odds?
Chelsea vs Crystal Palace odds from Betfred
-
Chelsea - 3/5
-
Draw - 3/1
-
Crystal Palace - 11/2
*odds subject to change
Who is the referee?
Anthony Taylor will take charge of the contest in London. He will be assisted by Gary Beswick and Adam Nunn
David Coote is the fourth official while John Brooks is the video assistant referee.
Match facts
- Chelsea have won each of their last nine fixtures with Crystal Palace, all coming in the Premier League. In the club’s history, they’ve enjoyed five separate instances of 10+ successive wins against an opponent, most recently a run of 11 versus Brighton between 1967 and 2019.
- Crystal Palace and Chelsea have both progressed from two of the four previous FA Cup ties between the sides, with this their first clash in the competition since round five in 1975-76, when the Eagles won 3-2.
- Chelsea have lost each of their last two FA Cup London derbies, both coming against Arsenal in the 2017 and 2020 final. In fact, each of the Blues’ last six such losses in the competition have come at the hands of the Gunners, remaining unbeaten in the other 10 London derby games before that 2017 final (W8 D2).
- Chelsea are set to appear in their 26th FA Cup semi-final, with only Arsenal and Manchester United (30 each) appearing in more. 50% of these appearances have come since the turn of the millennium (13), at least three more times than any other side over that timeframe.
- Crystal Palace have progressed to the final of the FA Cup on two of the last three occasions they’ve reached the final four, most recently in 2015-16. This is their sixth appearance at this stage, though they are the only one of the remaining sides never to win the competition.
- This will be Chelsea’s 40th match taking place at Wembley stadium, with only Man Utd (52) and Arsenal (42) appearing there more regularly when used as a neutral venue (Liverpool also 40). Having already competed in the League Cup final this season, the Blues will play multiple matches at the venue for the sixth successive campaign.
- Michael Olise has had a direct hand in 50% of Crystal Palace’s 10 FA Cup goals this season (2 goals, 3 assists), with no player registering more direct goal involvements in the competition this campaign than the Eagles winger (same as Riyad Mahrez).
- Only Sergio Agüero (20) has scored more FA Cup goals than Romelu Lukaku (16) since the Belgian’s debut in the competition in January 2012, netting in three of Chelsea’s four matches this season. Lukaku has scored eight goals in 12 previous appearances at neutral venues in all competitions when playing for sides within the big five European leagues, though is yet to net at Wembley in four appearances.
- Including two-legged affairs, Thomas Tuchel has overseen 11 wins and one draw in 12 previous semi-final matches in all competitions, going on to progress to the final each time. Across his spells with Dortmund, PSG and current club Chelsea, his sides have scored 28 goals in these matches, conceding only four times, and keeping nine clean sheets.
- Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira was last involved in an FA semi-final in 2010-11, when at Man City, he came on as a late substitute in a 1-0 win over Man Utd at Wembley. As a player, he faced Chelsea in five different matches without ever losing in the competition (W4 D1), including the 2002 final, which turned out to be the second of his five trophies.
