Chelsea vs Everton

Chelsea’s pursuit of a top-five finish in the Premier League continues with a must-win clash against bottom-half Everton at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea lost charismatic manager Enzo Maresca to a touchline ban after Pedro Neto’s stoppage-time winner in a 2-1 triumph at Fulham last weekend prompted the Italian coach’s wild celebrations. Maresca’s behavior was somewhat understandable as Chelsea maintained their hopes of securing a sought-after top-five finish in the Premier League. Indeed, they trail fifth-placed Newcastle by only two points ahead of the kick-off, with the UEFA Conference League semi-final first leg against Djurgarden waiting in the wings. That could prove an unwanted distraction, yet the Blues can take heart from their unbeaten home league record against teams starting this round 10th or worse (W7, D2). Furthermore, they thumped Everton 6-0 in this corresponding fixture last season, while the two teams shared the spoils in a scoreless draw at Goodison in December.

In the meantime, Everton put on a spirited performance against Chelsea’s top-five rivals Manchester City last weekend, only to concede twice beyond the 80th minute in a 2-0 home loss. That was the Toffees’ only second league defeat across their past 13 outings (W5, D6), suggesting they should take the field in high spirits despite losing captain James Tarkowski to a hamstring injury. Tarkowski’s absence may hinder Evertons’ hopes of arresting an embarrassing 29-game winless league streak at Stamford Bridge. Confidence comes from a last-gasp 1-0 win at Chelsea’s fellow Champions League-chasing foes Nottingham Forest on their last road trip, suggesting David Moyes’ side may pull off an upset in London.