Havertz lone goal gifts Chelsea win over Crystal Palace, ease pressure on Potter

Kai Havertz’s second-half header saw Chelsea edge their way to a nervy 1-0 win against Crystal Palace that eased the pressure on the embattled Graham Potter.

Neither side entered the contest with any form to speak of, with the scrutiny on Potter after just one win in eight games, while the visitors had only a single victory in their previous six matches.

A cagey and nervous affair could have perhaps been expected then, but both teams instead played out an entertaining first half in which Vicente Guaita and Kepa Arrizabalaga were called into action on several occasions.

The nerves started to show themselves in a bad-tempered second period, but it was Chelsea who claimed all three points thanks to Havertz’s towering header (64), with the Blues now 10th, six points clear of the 12th-placed Eagles.

Sky Sports