A brace from Portuguese winger Pedro Neto helped Chelsea continue their return to form, as they handed hosts Everton their first defeat of the season with a 2-0 win in the seventh round of the English Premier League yesterday. However, Chelsea lost Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, who left the match injured.
اضافة اعلان
Cole Palmer’s teammates achieved two objectives at once, ending their points tie with Everton, who had held the advantage on goal difference before the match, and keeping a clean sheet for the first time in 23 league matches. The victory lifted Chelsea to 13 points and provisionally placed them fourth.
The Liverpool-based side, meanwhile, suffered its first defeat after a run of draws. Everton had collected just one point from four of their five matches before yesterday’s encounter.
At Hill Dickinson Stadium, the physical contest began with an unexpected lack of attacking action. The first 25 minutes produced only a handful of half-chances before Everton stepped up their attack, with German player Merlin Röhl heading narrowly wide in the 26th minute and star winger Jack Grealish forcing an excellent save from Martínez with a dangerous shot in the 30th minute.
Chelsea came close to scoring against the run of play when Ecuadorian midfielder Moisés Caicedo unleashed a powerful shot in the 40th minute, only for the crossbar to deny him.
Neto had already warned the Toffees with a fierce effort late in the first half, which Jordan Pickford pushed away in stoppage time at 45+1 minutes. He then opened the scoring in the early stages of the second half with a low shot that slipped under Pickford following a cross from Dutch defender Jorrel Hato.
The visitors’ celebrations were overshadowed in the 75th minute when goalkeeper Martínez was carried off on a stretcher after an extended period of treatment from the medical team, following a heavy collision with Jarrad Branthwaite.
Neto sealed Chelsea’s victory in the final minute of regular time, capitalizing on a loose ball that Everton’s defense failed to clear.
Source: Al-Ghad.
