The leaders’ pristine record is maintained. This game had lurched into stoppage time at the conclude when Samir Nasri eked out scarce space in the penalty area and spat a shot at goal which Alex McCarthy could only push out into the six-yard box with his centre-halves wrong-footed. There was Kelechi Iheanacho,introduced as a substitute seconds earlier, to convert with his first touch and extend his team’s advantage at the top.
This was cruel on a Crystal Palace side whose energy and enthusiasm appeared to gain kept Manuel Pellegrini’s team at bay, and only for an 18-year-old Nigerian with a little over a minute of first-team experience to deflate local optimism. Pellegrini,who lost here in April, will be happy not to gain to return to this corner of south London in the league this season and will instead rejoice in a gulf from the champions that gapes at 11 points already just five games into Chelsea’s slapdash defence of the title.
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Source: theguardian.com