After a run of poor results, Chelsea got back to winning ways in the Premier League, overcoming Everton 2-0 at Stamford Bridge.
It is the first time since 22nd November that Enzo Maresca’s side have tasted victory in the top flight.
It only took the Blues 21 minutes before they went 1-0 up. On his first start at the Bridge since August, it was always going to be Cole Palmer who fired Chelsea into the lead.
It was a well-taken goal, too, with the England star making a well-timed underlapping run between the Everton defence and firing home past Jordan Pickford.
Chelsea had chances to double their lead, which they squandered. However, they did find the back of the net again on the stroke of half-time. It was Malo Gusto who got on the scoresheet this time, capping off an incisive counterattack by slotting home Pedro Neto’s cross.
maresca
It was a fantastic performance on the whole from the West Londoners. They shoot up to fourth in the Premier League, although most teams around them have a game in hand. Maresca will be hoping his side can build some momentum ahead of a busy few weeks.
There were a couple of real standouts for the Blues, and not just Palmer and Gusto...
Chelsea's best players vs Everton
It was inevitable, in many ways, that Palmer was going to have his say on this game. His first home start in months did not disappoint, with the Wythenshawe-born attacker proving why he is one of the Premier League’s most dangerous players.
It was a showing worthy of an 8/10 rating from Goal journalist Richie Mills. He said the Chelsea number 10 'showed good speed and a smart finish', describing his performance as 'a good day at the office' in front of the home faithful.
Palmer-1
The same could certainly be said for Gusto. He set Palmer up with a through ball that threaded the needle superbly, before getting on the score sheet himself for the second time in that famous Blue shirt.
Indeed, his stats from the game are superb. Gusto was constantly involved, having 81 touches, and completed 90% of his passes, as per Sofascore. Not only did the Frenchman create two chances, but he also made four ball recoveries and was impressive off the ball.
Gusto
However, Palmer and Gusto were not the only two Chelsea players who stood out against Everton.
Chelsea duo look made for Mourinho
It was yet another clean sheet for the centre-back pairing of Trevoh Chalobah and Wesley Fofana. As a partnership, they have begun to string together some impressive performances and have become more than reliable for Maresca.
Chalobah Fofana
That was no different against the Toffees. They each received a 7/10 rating from Mills for their afternoon’s work. The journalist was full of compliments for the pair and said they are perhaps the 'best centre-back pairing' available to the Blues at the moment.
The stats from the game show just how well the pair, who earn a combined £250k per week, performed against the Toffees.
Some of the standouts included Fofana’s impressive 11 clearances and Cobham graduate Chalobah’s five successful duels out of seven.
Fofana & Chalobah's stats vs. Everton
Stat
Pass accuracy
Touches
Clearances
Ball recoveries
Duels won
Stats from Sofascore
Looking at the numbers in more detail, the West Londoners are unbeaten in their last seven games when the Frenchman and their academy graduate have started together.
Six of those games have been clean sheets.
Those numbers are superb and would certainly not look out of place in the era of Jose Mourinho at Stamford Bridge. The Portuguese manager famously oversaw a team that conceded just 15 league goals in a single season in 2004/05 - still the best-ever record in the division.
With the performances that Chalobah and Fofana have put in this season, it certainly feels very Mourinho-era coded. The ex-Blues boss is a famously pragmatic coach, so he would no doubt appreciate a record like six clean sheets in seven games.
jose-mourinho-chelsea
Indeed, it is helping Maesrca’s side, and the current Chelsea gaffer surely has his centre-back pairing locked in for the foreseeable future.
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