Chelsea come into this contest boasting their longest-unbeaten Premier League run of the campaign (W3, D4), yet consistency remains an ongoing issue for Mauricio Pochettino’s men. That was captured best last week when they downed Manchester United with a remarkable 4-3 win before being held to a 2-2 draw by basement boys Sheffield United at Bramall Lane - adding to their record of scoring and conceding at least twice in each of their last seven competitive matches.
No top-flight side has ever done so in eight consecutive games before, and that’ll be a record Chelsea won’t want to achieve. The Blues do at least start the round just five points from the top-six with a game in hand on United in sixth, so there should still be plenty of motivation to get among the wins here, while a proud record of no home league defeat against Everton since 1994 should inspire plenty of confidence (W15, D13).
The Toffees travel south on the back of another points deduction for breaching the Premier League’s profit and sustainability regulations, meaning they’re now eight points worse off than what they should be based on their results this season. Sean Dyche’s men now face the prospect of potentially finishing the round in the bottom-three if results go against them and if they can’t improve on their rotten Stamford Bridge record here.
With that points deduction, Everton would have actually started this round in the relegation zone had they not finally ended their 13-game winless league run last time out against Burnley (1-0). Just once previously have they managed successive league wins this season - a run of four victories in December - while they could also secure a league double over Chelsea for the first time since 1978/79.
Players to watch: One more assist would see Cole Palmer become the first Chelsea player to register double figures for both goals (16) and assists (9) in his first Premier League season with the club. Enjoying a fine run of late, Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin is hoping to score in three consecutive league games for the first time since August 2021.
Hot stat: Everton have only scored more than once in one of their last 14 Premier League games (2-2 v Spurs). #CHELSEA #everton #livefootball #livescores #livefootballmatchtoday #footballmatch #footballlive #footballtoday #epl #EPLLIVE #premierleague #CHELSEAvsEVERTON
