Chelsea came into the game on shaky form, as though the club had not lost in three games, they had won only one of those three. Having conceded seven goals in the last three league games, Blues fans were expecting a difficult game, but they could not be more wrong.
The scoreline reveals that it was a brilliant team performance, but some players really dazzled spectators. Here are three players who stood out for Chelsea.
Cole Palmer (No. 20)
Palmer was superb in front of goal, and sometimes far from it. His perfect hattrick inside 30 minutes showed how efficient he was. He scored from his first two shots of the game! Two of the goals he scored were from outside the box, with the second catching Jordan Pickford off his line from a whopping 34 yards.
Yesterday makes it Palmer’s second Premier league hattrick, making him the only Chelsea player to have ever scored more than one league hattrick for the west London club in the Premier League era. This feat looks more impressive when you consider the players the club has employed in said era.
None of Didier Drogba or Frank Lampard ever managed that feat, not even when Drogba managed 29 league goals in the 2009/10 season.
His four goal haul has now put him level with Erling Haaland in the golden boot race, with both players having now scored 20 league goals.
Conor Gallagher (No. 23)
Gallagher played a key role in the routing of Everton. He was impeccable out of possession and in possession. The Chelsea captain for the day led by example with his superb passing and his ball winning.
Gallagher completed 93% of his passes, but his excellence was in how well he helped retain possession, especially with winning fouls. Gallagher won double the number of fouls (8) of the next highest foul-winner (Nicolas Jackson, 4).
He also completed all four of his dribbles, while winning 13/18 ground duels, and 3/4 aerial duels. He was massive in the middle of the park. The fact that this performance came while he was playing deeper, alongside Moises Caicedo in the pivot, makes it even more impressive, as he usually plays further forward.
Nicolas Jackson (No. 15)
Jackson’s role in the penalty debacle should not distract anyone from the fact that he was near excellent on the day.
Jackson did an excellent job on Everton’s centerback duo James Tarkowski and Jarrad Branthwaite. He won 9/13 ground duels, and completed a match-high 5/7 dribbles. He even attempted and completed more dribbles than the wingers!
He did all that while doing his main job of getting into great shooting positions, getting on the end of two big chances and converting one. The way he controlled the ball and struck it near-post for his goal was technically excellent. He was the only Chelsea player who left the match with a goal and an assist.
There were many more good performances, but a significant part of the 6-0 victory can be attributed to these three players.