Everton begin life after Marco Silva with a difficult assignment at Goodison Park as Frank Lampard’s high-flying Chelsea come to town.
Silva was sacked this week following the Merseyside derby defeat at the hands of rivals Liverpool which consigned Everton to the relegation zone.
Club legend Duncan Ferguson takes charge of the first team as rumours swirl of a return for David Moyes, and his first task is to take on fourth-place Chelsea who bounced back from two defeats with a win over Aston Villa in midweek. Follow all the action live:
Everton 1 – 0 Chelsea
12 mins: Everton are working hard. They’re pressing Chelsea, pushing them backwards and the fans appreciate the effort.
Richarlison is almost in again. Pickford finds Calvert-Lewin who knocks it down to Walcott. Walcott slots a cross into the six yard box and Richarlison throws himself at the ball but is unable to reach it.
Everton 1 – 0 Chelsea
9 mins: Chelsea haven’t won this season when they’ve gone behind, but Everton have dropped the most points when they’ve been in front. Who’s going to come on top in this one?
Pulisic wins a throw in on the left side for Chelsea. They’ve been the better side so far yet they’re behind in the game.
Everton 0 – 0 Chelsea
3 mins: James sends the ball across the pitch and up to Azpilicueta who gets forward and in behind Sidibe. Pulisic makesa run into the box but Azpilicueta’s pass is a poor one and the ball goes out for a goal kick before Pulisic catches up to it.
Kick off in Merseyside is about five minutes away. After the we’ll be bringing you coverage of Bournemouth vs Liverpool at 3pm before the Manchester Derby gets underway at 5:30pm.
The teams head out on to the pitch, which Everton will we see today?
This is going to be a tough, tough task for Duncan Ferguson.
Chelsea have won each of the past 12 Premier League matches against newly-appointed coaches, or those managing their club in the top flight for the first time.
Everton defeated Chelsea 2-0 in March but since then Chelsea have been in free flowing goal scoring form.
However, Chelsea have conceded in every Premier League away game this season so Everton will get chances to win this game.
Tammy Abraham is the second top scorer in the Premier League this season with 11 goals and three assists from 14 league appearances. Only Leicester’s Jamie Vardy (14) has more goals than him this campaign.
He’ll want to cut that gap today.
Frank Lampard was given a boost yesterday as the transfer ban on the club was lifted meaning Chelsea are able to sign new players in the January transfer window. A win against Everton today would be the icing on the cake. Here are the details:
Chelsea manager, Frank Lampard, says his side need to be wary of Everton as he expects a bounce effect from the new caretaker managerial appointment. He said:
“It means it is a potentially more dangerous game for us, we all know when there is a change there can be a bounce effect – especially when they bring in a club legend like Duncan Ferguson is.
“And with the way he approached the game as a player, you would imagine they will have a go. You know they will give everything for a result which will turn things around for them.
“As a player I always thought at a stadium the fans can set the tone and they will be up for it. It’s up to us to counter that with how we play and our aggression.
“We were really good against Villa – the only thing was we didn’t score more goals. I expect more of the same.”
Everton caretaker boss Duncan Ferguson on the impact of his appointment and the changes he’s made to the starting line up:
“We’ve been positive, everyone has got a smile on their face and working hard. It is only a small amount of time but we’ve tried to pick them up.”
“I felt we needed some fresh legs, Tom Davies has done well and it was a tough decision but he’s played a few matches. Yerry Mina has a hamstring injury so that was forced on us.”
Will a change in manager change the fortunes of Everton?
Everton need to avoid defeat today. They’re currently in the relegation zone at 18th place in the league and a victory would see them shoot up to 14th.
One point would be enough to get them out of the relegation zone at least until Southampton play later this weekend.
For Chelsea, a win would would bring them level on points with third placed Manchester City who face Manchester United in this evenings game.
Everton defender Michael Keane has explained how the mood is at the club following the dismissal of Marco Silva, he said:
“It has been really difficult, all the lads are really disappointed. He is a great person and a really good manager. We’re disappointed it didn’t work out.”
But he added that having Duncan Ferguson in charge may be an advantage saying:
“I think we will see a different style of play, he’s motivated us and we’re desperate to get a win for him, the fans and ourselves. We’ll fight for him.
“We’ve had a change of managers and the fans will be up for it and we have to use that to our advantage.”
The big news coming out of Goodison Park this week was, of course, the sacking of Marco Silva.
The Portuguese had been on borrowed time for what feels an eternity, and while other failing clubs acted with managerial dismissals, Everton dithered in the latest sign that they have no idea what they want to be:
Team news
Duncan Ferguson makes two changes to the Everton side that lost the Merseyside derby 5-2 in midweek.
Theo Walcott and Morgan Schneiderlin come into the starting XI in place of the injured Yerry Mina and Tom Davies.
Chelsea are unchanged from the side that saw off Aston Villa last time out.
Hello and welcome along to the start of another Premier League weekend, and there are some belting fixtures to look out for. The Manchester derby might be the pick of the bunch later this evening, but first up is Everton vs Chelsea, as Duncan Ferguson takes charge of the Toffees following the sacking of Marco Silva this week.
MATCH PREVIEW
Odds
Everton win – 13/5
Draw – 14/5
Chelsea win – Evens
Prediction
Everton come into this game desperate to arrest their slide after slipping into the bottom three, but interim manager Duncan Ferguson has quite the job on his hands with a short turnaround before a game against a confident Chelsea side.
The visitors should pick up the three points away from home. Everton 1-3 Chelsea is our prediction.
When is it?
Kick-off at Goodison Park is at 12.30pm GMT.
How can I watch it?
The match will be aired live on BT Sport 1, with coverage beginning at 12pm.
BT Sport customers can watch the game via the online player or via the BT Sport app.
Team News
Everton are set to continue to be without midfielder Fabian Delph and captain Seamus Coleman, while interim manager Duncan Ferguson may also be unable to call upon centre-half Yerry Mina, who picked up a knock against Liverpool.
Tammy Abraham is likely to be fit despite leaving the pitch in pain against Aston Villa this week. Ross Barkley should return to the squad with illness, while Antonio Rudiger is moving closer to action after a longer-term injury absence.
Predicted line-ups
Everton XI: Jordan Pickford; Djibril Sidibe, Mason Holgate, Michael Keane, Lucas Digne; Tom Davies, Morgan Schneiderlin; Alex Iwobi, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Richarlison; Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Chelsea XI: Kepa; Reece James, Kurt Zouma, Fikayo Tomori, Cesar Azpilicueta; N’Golo Kante, Jorginho, Mason Mount; Willian, Tammy Abraham, Christian Pulisic.
