The Premier League has returned, and it came back with a bang. The league kicked off with a feisty London derby between Crystal Palace and Arsenal at Selhurst Park, which ended 2-0 in favour of the Gunners. Saturday started off with a shock result at Craven Cottage as Fulham held Liverpool to a 2-2 draw in which the Merseyside club trailed the Premier League newcomers twice. Other notable results included the shock win Bournemouth earned over Aston Villa and Newcastle United winning against the new boys Nottingham Forest. The evening kick-off between Everton and Chelsea was the last game of the day and it turned out to be the weekend’s ugliest.
There were doubts about whether the trend of mediocrity would continue for the Blues with Goodison Park being their bogey ground. All the madness of the transfer window and with players coming back from injury, it all seemed too much. Thomas Tuchel went with an experienced back line of Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Kalidou Koulibaly with Reece James and Ben Chilwell on either flank. The midfield comprised of Jorginho and N’Golo Kante, which was a bit surprising as it lacked any creativity and that was evident from the get-go. Everton also played with a back three, which saw the Toffees rely on counterattacks to trouble the Blues.
It was not the prettiest of games to watch for the neutrals as Chelsea lacked that creative edge and Everton was sitting back hoping for that one magical chance. The home side came close to scoring a couple of times, only to be denied by Edouard Mendy. The breakthrough finally came when Abdoulaye Doucoure fouled Chilwell in the box to award Chelsea a penalty in stoppage time of the first half, which was converted by Jorginho. In the second half, Everton came out guns blazing and had Chelsea under pressure. It came to no fruition as the visitors took home all three points in the end, putting an end to the losing streak on the blue half of Merseyside.
Here’s how each of the Blues fared in a tough game against the Toffees: