Chelsea vs Crystal Palace: The Blues Set Sights on FA Cup Final After Champions League Heartbreak

• Chelsea will be back in action this weekend with a meeting against Crystal Palace at Wembley Stadium
• A spot in the final of the FA Cup will be up for grabs during the clash, with the Blues keen to make it to the finals for the third season in a row
• The winner of the encounter will face off with Liverpool who sunk Manchester City 3-2 in the other semi-final fixture

Chelsea will be hoping to put their Champions League heartbreak behind them when they play rivals Crystal Palace in an FA Cup semi-final on Sunday, April 17, at Wembley Stadium.

The tie comes just days after the Blues nearly staged one of the most thrilling Champions League comebacks against Real Madrid.

Thomas Tuchel's men came close to overturning a 3-1 deficit suffered in the first leg of their quarter-final tie with Real, only for the La Liga giants to sail through on a 5-4 goal aggregate.

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Having been eliminated from the continental tournament, the FA Cup represent Chelsea's only realistic chance to end the season with a trophy.

Match Preview

Chelsea will be keen to qualify for the FA Cup final for the third consecutive season - having finished as runners-up in 2020 and 2021.

The west Londoners had to overcome Chesterfield, Plymouth Argyle, Luton Town and Middlesbrough to make it to Wembley.

Only Crystal Palace now stand between them and the chance to win their ninth FA Cup trophy.

Meanwhile, Palace will be no pushovers, with the London side also looking to make it to the final under Patrick Vieira.

The Eagles have made it to the final twice - losing to Manchester United on both occasions.

Team news

Chelsea have a number of injury concerns ahead of the Palace clash, with the duo of Ben Chilwell and Callum Hudson-Odoi unavailable.

Romelu Lukaku faces a late fitness test after being sidelined in recent days, while Ross Barkley is fit as well.

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In the Crystal Palace camp, Vieira will be without Conor Gallagher, while Michael Olise has a strong chance of recovering from his foot problem in time.

Possible starting XI

Chelsea:

Edouard Mendy; Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva, Antonio Rudiger; Reece James, Mateo Kovacic, N'Golo Kante, Marcos Alonso; Mount, Werner; Havertz

Crystal Palace:

Guaita; Clyne, Andersen, Guehi, Mitchell; McArthur, Kouyate, Schlupp; Jordan Ayew, Mateta, Wilfried Zaha

Sadio Mane sinks Man City in FA Cup clash

Earlier, Sports Brief reported Liverpool marched on to the final of the FA Cup with a 3-2 victory over Manchester City.

Sadio Mané punished a poor Manchester City defence in the first half as he grabbed two goals to set Liverpool on their way to victory.

Manchester City showed more fight in the second half as Jack Grealish and Bernando Silva scored the Citizens' consolation.