16' The Palace fans behind the Chelsea goal jeer the referee as the believe they finally get a call in their favour as Kovacic fouls Ward.
15' SAVE! Mount goes for goal with a curling strike from 20 yards, but his effort is repelled by the fists of Guaita.
14' Mount is tripped on the edge of the box by Ward and Chelsea are awarded a free-kick in a dangerous position.
13' WIDE! Kovacic collects a cutback from Werner on the edge of the box and goes for a low strike towards the target, but his attempt is deflected just wide of the left post.
12' Alonso wins the ball and plays a one-two with Werner, but the offload from the German into the left-inside channel goes astray.
10' SAVE! Alonso has space on the left flank and he angles a cross into the box. Pulisic arrives with a glancing header, but he sends his attempt straight at Guaita.
7' Mount does well down the right and fires a low ball into the box. Werner tries to take it in stride, but cannot escape Kouyate. It rolls out to Azpilicueta to strike from a difficult angle and his effort sails well over the bar.
6' It has been a quiet start to proceedings as the Blues have dominated possession, but have not worked their way through the Palace backline yet.
3' Werner tries to stretch in the right-inside channel to keep a pass from Jorginho alive, but he cannot stop it rolling out for a goal-kick.
1' We're underway at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea have won 16 of their last 20 Premier League meetings with Crystal Palace (L4), including each of the last seven in a row.
Vieira hands a debut to only one of his summer signings. Guehi gets the nod to start against his former club in the heart of the Palace defence. He partners Kouyate, while Mitchell and Ward make up the back four, leaving Andersen on the bench. Zaha, Mateta and Ayew lead the line for the Eagles.
Chelsea have made five changes to their side that beat Villarreal in the European Super Cup final. Christensen, Azpilicueta, Jorginho, Mount and Pulisic all start for the Blues this afternoon. Havertz, Hudson-Odoi and Zouma all drop to the bench. Hakim Ziyech is out with a shoulder injury and N'Golo Kante is also sidelined after suffering a knock during the week. Lukaku will have to wait for his second Chelsea debut.
CRYSTAL PALACE SUBS: Jack Butland, Joachim Andersen, Nathaniel Clyne, Christian Benteke, Martin Kelly, Scott Banks, Reece Hannam, Robert Street, Jesuran Rak-Sakyi.
CRYSTAL PALACE (4-3-3): Vicente Guaita; Joel Ward, Marc Guehi, Cheikhou Kouyate, Tyrick Mitchell; Jairo Riedewald, James McArthur, Jeffrey Schlupp; Jordan Ayew, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Wilfried Zaha.
CHELSEA SUBS: Kepa Arrizabalaga; Thiago Silva, Tammy Abraham, Kurt Zouma, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Ben Chilwell, Reece James, Kai Havertz, Emerson.
CHELSEA (3-4-3): Edouard Mendy; Trevor Chalobah, Andreas Christenen, Antonio Rudiger; Cesar Azpilicueta, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, Marcos Alonso; Christian Pulisic, Timo Werner, Mason Mount.
Palace begin a new era with Patrick Vieira in the dugout after the Frenchman replaced Roy Hodgson, who stepped down at the end of last term. The Eagles have finished 14th in their last two terms and will be eager to improve their standing under their new manager. Vieira will manage in the Premier League for the first time, although he is far from a novice having previous experience with New York City FC and Nice. Palace have been active in the transfer market over the summer with the siginings of Joachim Andersen, Marc Guehi and Michael Olise along with a loan move for Conor Gallagher. All eyes will be on the former Arsenal skipper to see how he performs as a Premier League manager.
Chelsea return to Premier League action after a successful two-game spell in Europe. The Blues have won the Champions League and the European Super Cup since their last league outing in May. Romelu Lukaku has been signed since their triumph in the Super Cup on Wednesday over Villarreal, although the Belgian is not avaiable today. Thomas Tuchel made a decisive impact last season and will be eyeing the top-flight crown after beating Manchester City in the Champions League. A strong start is required on home soil.
Good afternoon and welcome to the live commentary of the Premier League clash between Chelsea and Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge.
