Despite Chelsea closing the gap at the top of the table to two points with victory over relegation strugglers Palace, manager José Mourinho still finds himself with no answers to the chronic inconsistency which has plagued his side's league campaign so far. An unconvincing victory was secured in the first half after Ramires thumped home from outside the area, but a tense second half in which Petr Cech was repeatedly called into action will only deepen doubts over the Blues' ability to maintain their title challenge in the new year. Fernando Torres may have tapped home the opening goal after Willian's zipping strike was palmed away by the excellent Julian Speroni, but with his other major contribution limited to a well-timed duck out of the way of Ramires' match-winning strike, Mourinho would be unwise to consider this any sort of turning point in solving his strikeforce's crisis of confidence. A flurry of wasted chances late in the second half, squandered by such a diverse cast as Ramires, Demba Ba, Andre Schurrle and Oscar, may even suggest it is spreading. Palace also struggled to put away a number of good opportunities, though a display of discipline and bravery will give them hope for their chances of pulling out of the relegation zone. Chelsea may have been the more forward-thinking team in the first half, but Palace made the most of their limited opportunities. A foray into the Chelsea half on the half-hour mark saw Joel Ward launch an innocuous looking cross into the Chelsea area, only for Marouane Chamakh to tap in after being left open by David Luiz. The Palace supporters sang that the Moroccan scores when he wants. With four goals from five shots on target this season, they may have more of a point than they realise. The subdued Chelsea support, barely able to muster a song all game, had no response. While John Terry at least continues to demonstrate the authority of old, even if whatever pace once existed is long gone, Chelsea's defensive woes are perhaps an even more serious issue than their misfiring strikers. Palace can count themselves unlucky not to have taken a point at least, with the Blues calling on Petr Cech in the second half to punch away Jason Puncheon's forceful strike after drifting inside Cesar Azpilicueta, and John Terry to fortuitously backheel the ball away after Stuart O'Keefe beat the goalkeeper when presented with several opportunities after Luiz and Essien fell over each other in attempting to make a simple clearance. Luiz suffered a dreadful afternoon, needing rescue by John Terry early on after an embarrassing nutmeg and struggling to keep pace with a fluid Palace front line. Long gone appears the commander who took control of a struggling Chelsea back line during the final months of the Rafa Benitez reign. Having lost his place due to a series of costly blunders earlier in the season, the iconic mane of fuzzy hair which once bristled with leonine authority now flaps limply in the December chill. Should Barcelona come calling, Chelsea may no longer be quite so reticent to pick up the phone. Palace's strategy depended on congesting midfield and breaking quickly, with Jason Puncheon and Cameron Jerome attacking the vulnerable David Luiz and Azpilicueta, who continues to look out of place on the left. Given Ivanovic has been one of Chelsea's more reliable defenders this year, Mourinho may yet consider partnering him with Terry in the centre, allowing Azpilicueta to return to his natural home on the right and giving Ashley Cole the chance to regain his form on the left - or even, should a Christmas miracle come to pass, the exiled Ryan Bertrand awarded an opportunity to build on his promising performances earlier in the year. With Chelsea's central midfield pairing of Essien and Ramires looking pugnacious but uninspiring, the Blues were forced wide, where deep crosses from Ivanovic never looked like finding their target and Eden Hazard flitted in and out of game. Willian's pace and direct running caused trouble in the first half, but faded as Palace gained control in the latter stages. Juan Mata, needing to take every chance after only recently winning the confidence of a skeptical Mourinho, was given no space in his customary role behind the striker, although will take comfort that his replacement Oscar enjoyed no greater success. With Pulis' tactics forcing Chelsea to rely on their wide men for service, the away side enjoyed comfortable aerial domination throughout. One wonders what must have been going through the mind of Kevin de Bruyne, the only naturally gifted crosser in Chelsea's squad and absent once again from the matchday eighteen. Ahead of a crucial showdown at the Emirates on Dec 23rd, where a win would see the Blues take top spot in the league over Christmas, Mourinho will have plenty of questions to ask of himself and his squad.
