EPL: Chelsea held to 1-1 draw by Crystal Palace as Jackson shines following nine-year deal

Nicolas Jackson marked his recent contract extension with a first-half goal, but Chelsea had to settle for a 1-1 draw against Crystal Palace.

The 23-year-old forward, who recently signed a nine-year deal keeping him at the club until 2033, put the Blues ahead at Stamford Bridge.

However, Eberechi Eze’s sublime second-half equalizer earned the Eagles their first point of the season.

Chelsea took the lead in the 25th minute when Jackson finished off a counter-attack initiated by Noni Madueke.

Madueke ran forward, passing Palace’s Will Hughes before setting up Cole Palmer, who found Jackson unmarked in the box for a simple tap-in.

Despite Chelsea’s dominance, they failed to secure all three points as Eze levelled the score with a stunning curling effort eight minutes into the second half.

The Blues, coming off a midweek trip to Switzerland for Europa Conference League action, seemed to struggle with fatigue, even though manager Enzo Maresca made nine changes to the starting lineup.