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Chelsea have released a statement after supporters were left rushing to get into Stamford Bridge for the first game of the new Premier League season due to errors with the club's digital ticketing system.
Although it is claimed that all fans who were left queueing outside the ground were in before kick-off, hundreds had been struggling to enter just an hour prior to the match.
Chelsea switched to a new system over the summer but faults emerged at the wrong time early on Sunday afternoon. It is understood that supporters saw their tickets disappear from the official app only for them to return some time later.
During the first half of the game against Crystal Palace, Chelsea said: "The club is aware there were some issues with the ticketing system for approximately 30 minutes, between 12.30pm and 1pm, before today's Premier League match against Crystal Palace.
"We will do everything we can to ensure this does not happen again. We apologise to supporters who were affected by this and thank them for their patience. The issue was resolved, and all ticketed supporters were admitted to the stadium safely in time for kick-off."
Tickets did appear again for fans to use on their phones and gain access to the stadium but only after large swathes had been left waiting outside in the west London sunshine.
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Chelsea changed ticketing systems after the end of last season but have had a rough start with it. The new plans were trialled in friendly matches against Bayer Leverkusen and Milan last weekend but that was without the usual number of season ticket holders attending.
The friendlies were also not completely sold out, unlike this clash. Supporters had already been urged to arrive early.
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