Former Chelsea left-back Ashley Cole has praised defender Cesar Azpilicueta as “unstoppable” following the Blues’ 1-0 win over Crystal Palace.
Chelsea retained their defensive discipline to cancel out Alan Pardew’s side throughout the second half, as their back three continued to command proceeding centrally.
Azpilicueta, though, also once again proved that he has the nous and mobility to fill in for Victor Moses when the Nigerian joins in attack, and handed Palace very little opportunity to get behind the Blues’ defence.
Cole told Sky Sports following Chelsea’s win today, as reported by the Evening Standard: “The way he trains and gets up against people, for me, he is unstoppable at right back. If he’s got the mentality, he’s going to go a long way.”
Chelsea kept their tenth clean sheet of the campaign and extended their winning streak to 11 games, matching the run that they enjoyed during the 2009/10 campaign.
Conte has recently expressed his desire to bring in defensive reinforcements in the future, with John Terry and Branislav Ivanovic seemingly set for departures, and it seems appropriate given the lack of cover he has right across his back line.
Kurt Zouma is expected to make his return in the near future, having suffered a serious knee injury February, but apart from youngster Ola Aina, Chelsea have no other recognised defenders among their ranks.
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