Crystal Palace vs. Chelsea: Guus Hiddink's Key Comments from Pre-Match Presser

Chelsea manager Guus Huddink has insisted no players will be leaving Stamford Bridge in the upcoming January window.

The Dutchman was addressing the media ahead of the Blues’ trip to Selhurst Park on Sunday, where they will face high-flying Crystal Palace. When asked about his January plans, Hiddink was adamant the squad of players in situ will remain intact for the rest of the season, per the Chelsea Twitter feed:

The Blues will be seeking to secure a vital away win as they bid to put an awful end to 2015 behind them.

Chelsea’s last outing was a 0-0 draw against Manchester United, and while the Blues may be contented with a clean sheet at a difficult venue, there was little in terms of attacking spark from the champions. That must return in south London on Sunday if they are to best a very capable Palace side.

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Diego Costa will be back from suspension and hoping to build on his brace against Watford in his previous appearance. Hiddink also had updates on the fitness of some players:

It’ll certainly be intriguing to see whether or not the Dutchman will bring any new faces in midseason. But one player who could quickly become available to the Blues is their young forward Patrick Bamford, who has been on loan at Palace.

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The youngster has endured a difficult spell having played a meagre 119 minutes of football in the Premier League and not started a game this season.

After the Eagles’ 0-0 draw with Swansea, the 22-year-old was adamant the match was his last one for the club: “If I were being honest, it has been terrible,” he added of the loan, per Dominic Fifield of the Guardian.

Hiddink revealed that the two teams will hold talks about Bamford’s future:

Meanwhile, as the Dutchman’s press conference was ongoing, Bamford added a statement on his own social media page:

Hiddink was also asked about the Blues upcoming opponents and suggested the Eagles may have what it takes to secure a Champions League spot:

Indeed, the clash with Crystal Palace will be a very difficult test for the Blues. Alan Pardew has assembled a wonderful squad at Selhurst Park that’ll cause big problems for Chelsea.

They’ve already beaten the champions this season too, a 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge a sign of things to come for the Blues.

Hiddink will know that a big result is needed to kick-start his tenure and after a decent showing at Old Trafford last time out, he will be seeking to make further progress when they face their local rivals on Sunday.

However, if some common frailties surface, Palace have enough quality within their ranks to inflict more misery on the Blues in their first match of 2016.