Hakim Ziyech’s volley in the 89th-minute snatched a late 1-0 win for newly-crowned world champions Chelsea at Crystal Palace.
The game looked destined to end goalless but the Blues made it nine wins on the bounce against Palace after substitute Marcos Alonso’s cross found Ziyech free at the back post to strengthen Chelsea’s hold on third spot.
Thomas Tuchel’s side move seven points clear of fourth-placed Manchester United, who have the chance to close that gap when they play Leeds on Sunday.
Ziyech thought he had scored for Chelsea 15 minutes before his winning goal, finishing from close-range after Romelu Lukaku’s parried effort fell for him in the area only for VAR to show the Belgium striker to be offside.
Wilfried Zaha had two big chances – one to open the scoring at the end of the first half and the other to equalise deep in the second – but fired both opportunities wide as Palace’s wait for a first league win of the year goes on.
