Everton vs Chelsea preview, predictions & confirmed team news
Everton will look to claw their way back out of the bottom three when they host Chelsea at Goodison Park on Saturday.
The Toffees were humiliated 5-2 in Wednesday’s Merseyside derby against Liverpool at Anfield, resulting in Marco Silva’s departure with Duncan Ferguson replacing him on an interim basis.
Chelsea will head north full of confidence after their 2-1 win over Aston Villa — a result which ended a run of three games without a win for Frank Lampard’s men, including two consecutive Premier League defeats.
Will Everton’s poor run continue or will they enjoy a new manager bounce against Lampard’s talented youngsters? Read on for our preview, predictions, team news and TV coverage information.
When is Everton vs Chelsea and where can I watch live?
Competition: Premier League
Venue: Goodison Park
Date: Saturday, 7 December 2019
Kick-off: 12:30 PM (UK time)
TV coverage (UK): BT Sport 1
Last five meetings: Everton vs Chelsea
17 Mar 2019: Everton 2-0 Chelsea (Premier League)
11 Nov 2018: Chelsea 0-0 Everton (Premier League)
23 Dec 2017: Everton 0-0 Chelsea (Premier League)
25 Oct 2017: Chelsea 2-1 Everton (League Cup)
27 Aug 2017: Chelsea 2-0 Everton (Premier League)
Aggregate Score: Everton (WDDLL) 3-4 Chelsea (LDDWW)
Ones to watch
Everton: Richarlison
Richarlison has three goals in his last four games for Everton, but all of them have come away from Goodison Park.
It goes without saying that if the Toffees are to pull themselves out of the mess they’re in, improving their home form is going to be vital — Everton have already lost to the likes of Sheffield United and Norwich City at Goodison Park.
Getting Richarlison among the goals there will be important.
Key stat: Richarlison hasn’t scored a Premier League goal at Goodison Park since his brace against Wolves on September 1.
Chelsea: Kurt Zouma
Given how Liverpool practically walked through the middle of their defence on Wednesday, Everton will be cursing the fact they were unable to persuade Chelsea to part ways with Kurt Zouma on a permanent basis over the summer — the Frenchman became a fan favourite while on loan at Goodison Park last season.
Zouma lines up against Everton for the first time since ending his loan spell there and will be keeping a close eye on Richarlison, as well as the likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Alex Iwobi as he looks to help Chelsea enhance their top four bid.
Key stat: Kurt Zouma has won more aerial duels (56) in the Premier League than any other Chelsea player this season.
Team news
Everton
Everton have made two changes from their defeat at Anfield with Ferguson bringing in Theo Walcott and Morgan Schneiderlin. They replace Yerry Mina, who misses out with injury, and Tom Davies who drops down to the bench.
Mina’s absence sees Everton revert to a back four and it also appears they may go with a four-man midfield too, whether setting that up flat or as a diamond.
Confirmed XI: Pickford; Sidibe, Holgate, Keane, Digne; Walcott, Schneiderlin, Sigurdsson, Iwobi; Richarlison, Calvert-Lewin.
Subscribe to Squawka’s Youtube channel here.
Chelsea
Chelsea are unchanged from the side that beat Aston Villa in midweek meaning Jorginho sits out for the second game in a row. Reece James continues at right-back after impressively dealing with Jack Grealish while Tammy Abraham leads the line.
There is, however, no place on the bench for Olivier Giroud who struggled against West Ham last weekend with Ross Barkley returning from injury.
Confirmed XI: Arrizabalaga; James, Christensen, Zouma, Azpilicueta; Kante, Kovacic, Mount; Willian, Abraham, Mount.
Squawka prediction
Having slipped into the relegation zone with their defeat to Liverpool, Everton really are in desperate need of results right now — not that they weren’t already.
The atmosphere around Goodison Park at the moment is incredibly toxic and Lampard’s young side have already shown how easily they can dismantle their opponents — confidence will be high after their win over Villa. Expect yet more pressure to be piled upon Silva.
Scoreline prediction: Everton 1-3 Chelsea
