Melvine Malard struck twice after half-time as Chelsea overturned an early deficit to beat Crystal Palace 3-1 and preserve their unbeaten start to the Women’s Super League season.
Molly Bartrip gave Palace a surprise lead in the 20th minute, tapping home at the far post for her first goal in four years.
It was the first time Chelsea had fallen behind in the league this campaign.
Malard levelled with a powerful long-range effort shortly after the interval before heading the visitors ahead in the 75th minute.
Sandy Baltimore then sealed the victory with a penalty as the match entered the 90th minute.
The win sends Sonia Bompastor’s side top, one point ahead of Manchester City, who visit Manchester United at 18:00 GMT on Sunday.
Palace drop to 12th after a sixth successive league match without victory.
Chelsea controlled the opening exchanges and twice had efforts cleared off the line inside 15 minutes.
Allyson Swaby kept out Lucy Bronze’s header before two Palace defenders combined to block Malard’s low shot.
Despite that pressure, Palace struck first when Bartrip escaped her marker to turn in Fuka Tsunoda’s corner at the back post.
Malard wasted an excellent opportunity to equalise immediately after the restart, missing an open goal after Pauline Peyraud-Magnin pushed her initial effort back into her path.
She responded emphatically in the 51st minute, driving a fierce right-footed shot into the net from distance.
Former Chelsea striker Bethany England then passed up a chance to put Palace back in front, firing over from inside the penalty area.
Chelsea eventually found their second when Baltimore worked her way down the left and delivered a delicate cross for Malard to head home at the near post.
An offside decision denied Malard a hat-trick in the 84th minute, but she remained central to Chelsea’s attack, winning the late penalty that Baltimore calmly converted.
Chelsea reached the interval trailing despite having 72% possession and repeatedly testing Palace’s defence.
They registered four attempts in the opening 15 minutes alone, yet a lapse in concentration at a corner allowed Bartrip to score unmarked.
Bompastor responded by introducing Baltimore and Erin Cuthbert for Alyssa Thompson and Maiko Hamano at half-time, and both substitutes helped shift the contest.
Cuthbert brought energy and purpose to midfield, underlining her intent with an early run from halfway to the edge of the Palace penalty area.
Baltimore supplied the creativity that unlocked the hosts for Chelsea’s second goal.
Her footwork down the left created room for the cross that Malard converted, before she completed the scoring from the spot.
Malard’s contribution extended beyond her two finishes.
She recorded eight shots, including five on target, and had 15 touches inside the opposition box.
Her pressing was equally valuable, with her pace repeatedly putting Peyraud-Magnin under pressure as Palace attempted to build from the back.
Having scored from the bench on her debut against Birmingham, Malard has established herself in Chelsea’s starting line-up, finding the net three times in her past three WSL appearances.
