Antonio Conte Praises Chelsea Performance Against Palace As He Looks Ahead to Barcelona Clash

Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has said that he is pleased with his side's performance after they returned to winning ways against relegation candidates Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The Blues were handed many scoring opportunities during the match but only found the back of the net on two occasions. And in the end, their two goals were just enough to snatch all three points as Palace scored late to make it a 2-1 affair.

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Conte, who had seen his side win just one league game from their last five, said his team played a good game against a good team.

"I think that we created a lot of chances to score a lot of goals today. We conceded 2-1 at the end and there's a bit of pressure but did well to keep the ball high up the pitch way from our box," the Italian remarked after the match (via the Daily Star).

"I think we deserved to win, we played a good game, especially in the first half against a good Crystal Palace. They are a good team fighting a lot to avoid relegation."

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There's very little time to dwell on the victory, however, as Chelsea have an important Champions League encounter with Barcelona coming up on Wednesday. And Conte is already looking ahead.

"We tried to finish the game, but I think that their goalkeeper made good saves and we hit the post," he added. "For sure when you have so many chances it is important to be clinical, but we must be pleased with the performance of the team and prepare for Barcelona."

”We have to prepare for that game in the right ways, they are a strong team, the game will be totally different compared to today but we have three days to decide with the players the right plan."