An extraordinary Barclays Premier League encounter, including five goals in a frantic 10-minute period in the second half, ended with the Blues running out 6-3 winners on Merseyside. The tone was set with two Chelsea goals inside the first three minutes, composed finishes from Diego Costa and Branislav Ivanovic. Kevin Mirallas struck back for the hosts just before half-time but an own goal from Seamus Coleman restored our two-goal advantage midway through the second half. Further goals were then traded: first Steven Naismith, then Nemanja Matic , before Samuel Etoo made it 4-3 with almost his first touch for the Toffees. Ramires hit back instantly and the points were sealed as the clock ticked over to 90 minutes courtesy of the brilliant Diego Costa. Six goals is by two the most we have scored at this ground, and the margin of victory matches our previous record victories at Goodison, 3-0 wins in 1908 and 1956. Team News Having been an injury doubt in the build-up to the game good news arrived before kick-off when Diego Costa was passed fit to play. An ankle injury sustained in training yesterday ruled Oscar out of the matchday squad, but there were places in the starting XI for compatriots Willian and Ramires, Andre Schurrle the other man making way. They were the only two changes from the identical sides Mourinho had begun with in our first two matches of the season. For our hosts, Romelu Lukaku started as the lone frontman, while another striker that recently called Stamford Bridge home, Samuel Eto’o, was named among the Toffees’ substitutes. Chelsea were in all yellow for the first time since the 2009 FA Cup final, against today’s opponents, and every player was wearing a black armband in memory of Lord Attenborough, our Life President who died on Sunday. First Half A packed Goodison Park crowd had only just settled into their seats when, in the flash of an eye, Chelsea took the lead. The ball was worked across our midfield from left to right, Ramires to Willian to Cesc Fabregas . The midfielder looked up, spotted a decisive run across the Evertonian backline from his Spanish team-mate Diego Costa and played the sort of penetrating through pass with which he made his name in this league nearly 10 years ago. Diego Costa found the space, timed his run to perfection and with the whites of Tim Howard’s eyes in his sights fired the ball low under the American keeper. Thirty-four seconds had been played, and though our opener was made to look very easy the decisive touches from the pair of Fabregas and Diego Costa pointed to the impressive, quick-paced football we have shown at times so far this season. If that was good then what followed almost immediately after was even better. Diego Costa was again at the heart of it, doing well to make space for himself down the left-hand side. He rolled the ball across the box to Ramires, who in turn slipped it through to Ivanovic. The right-back, heavily involved in so many of our goals this season, turned and finished with the confidence of a forward. Barely 150 seconds were on the clock, and our lead stood at two. Again the home side’s defence and support’s arms were raised in the hope of an offside flag; again they were denied, and rightly so. At the other end the assistant referee had his flag up three times in the opening five minutes. It appeared the 4-3-3 formation Mourinho had sent his men out in – with Nemanja Matic at the base of the midfield three - had taken Everton by surprise. It was a great start from Chelsea but it would have been the perfect one had the assistant referee, who had correctly ruled our two early goals onside, spotted Howard was well out of his 18-yard box when collecting another dangerous Fabregas pass. Hazard was the runner on this occasion. Everton had barely had a chance to threaten in our half of the pitch but with their first meaningful attack very nearly halved the deficit. A corner was swung in and crashed against the bar by Lukaku. It rebounded back, hit Distin and dribbled over the line. Much to our relief, the flag was up. Again, it was the right decision. Naismith, so often a thorn in our side in recent years, shot wide straight after and then it required a very good block from Cahill to keep out a goalbound shot from the lively Scot. We were happy to sit back and allow Everton possession but there was still a Chelsea threat on the break, evidenced when Fabregas won the ball back and struck for goal on the fringe of the box. Distin stuck out a leg and the ball rolled agonisingly past Howard and his left-hand post. It then required clever defending from the big French centre-back to play Diego Costa offside after Jagielka had recklessly ceded possession. Just as it looked like we would head into the interval two goals to the good, Everton hit back. A good overlapping run from Seamus Coleman preceded an excellent delivery that Mirallas did superbly to guide across goal into the top corner. Just like last season on this ground, an Everton goal on the stroke of half- time changed the complexion of the match. Second Half There was a chance for an Everton goal right after half-time, too, but the lurking Lukaku blazed over the bar after receiving a square ball on the edge of the box. For a while we had struggled to assert ourselves for any sustained period of time, but in the course of two minutes we created three excellent opportunities. The clearest fell to Diego Costa, again played in by Fabregas , but he was denied on the stretch by Howard. From the resulting corner Terry rose highest but straight at Everton’s keeper. Then Diego Costa, slipped in by Hazard this time, was thwarted by Howard again but from a much cuter angle than the one he will have felt he should have scored from moments earlier. Rarely out of the action, Diego Costa was then booked after some touchline tangling having already been warned by referee Moss. As the hour mark passed proceedings had grown increasingly frenetic, with Everton displaying the high-tempo game that has made them such a dangerous opponent in recent seasons. We still carried a threat, too. When Hazard drove at the Everton defence his low centre was turned into his own net by Seamus Coleman and our two-goal advantage was restored. That was the first goal of five in just 10 minutes! Everton hit back straight away through Naismith, who found worrying amounts of space in the box to slide past Courtois. At the other end Matic netted his first in the blue – or should that be yellow – of Chelsea, cutting on to his favoured left side and shooting beyond Howard from the edge of the box via the inside of the post. The dust had barely settled on that goal when Eto’o, recently brought on, slipped his man and met a Baines free-kick with a cute header. It was the sort of clever finish we saw on numerous occasions at the Bridge last season. 4-3. The Cameroonian striker didn’t celebrate, instead racing to collect the ball from the net to restart play. All that did, though, was give the ball back to Chelsea and we were devastating with it. Ramires exchanged a neat one-two with Matic 18 yards from goal (whether Mourinho would have wanted his two more defensive-minded midfielders so high up the pitch is another matter), picked up the return pass and on the slide coolly finished past Howard. 5-3! It was very nearly 5-4 much to the excitement of a breathless Goodison, but Courtois produced an outstanding save to turn a Mirallas volley onto the post on 81 minutes. Filipe Luis was then introduced for his Chelsea debut. He and Mikel, another sub, helped to calm proceedings before we struck what had to be the killer sixth. Ramires was the architect, bursting from deep as he had threatened to do on a couple of occasions earlier as the game got more stretched. He cleverly backheeled the ball into the path of Diego Costa. What followed was magnificent. He ran clear on Howard, then allowed Distin to slide in anticipation of a shot. He stepped over the ball to take the Frenchman out of the game before finishing superbly across the American. Game, set and match, and now the joyous travelling support could celebrate in the knowledge that the three points were coming back to London. There was still time for Eto’o to draw a great block from Terry but the final whistle of a blockbuster Premier League match sounded soon after. We head in to the international break with three wins out of three. Match Facts Chelsea (4-3-3): Courtois ; Ivanovic , Cahill , Terry (c), Azpilicueta; Ramires, Matic , Fabregas (Drogba 89); Willian (Mikel 75), Diego Costa, Hazard (Filipe Luis 83). Unused subs Cech , Zouma , Schurrle , Salah Goals Diego Costa 1, 90, Ivanovic 3, Coleman own goal 67, Matic 74, Ramires 77 Booked Diego Costa 56, Ramires 65, Fabregas 81 Everton (4-2-3-1): Howard; Coleman, Jagielka (c), Distin, Baines; McCarthy, Barry; Mirallas, Naismith, McGeady (Etoo 70); Lukaku. Unused subs Robles, Stones, Alcaraz, Gibson, Besic, Osman Goals Mirallas 45, Naismith 69, Eto’o 76 Booked Howard 69 Referee Jon Moss
Posted on: Sat, 30 Aug 2014 20:35:12 +0000
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