May 01, (THEWILL) – Everton boosted their Premier League survival prospects with a hard-fought victory over an uninspiring Chelsea side at Goodison Park on Sunday, with Richarlison scoring the game-winning goal after Cesar Azpilicueta’s costly blunder.
The home side’s strong pressing and tenacity resulted in a frantic first half, with tempers threatening to flare on several occasions – despite the fact that chances were few and far between.
Anthony Gordon was pulled down on the edge of the box by Ruben Loftus-Cheek, and it allowed him the chance to open the scoring in the first minute, but his free kick sailed over the crossbar.
Despite Everton’s disrupting tactics, Chelsea dominated possession and had their first attempt on target when Mason Mount twisted a long-range effort barely wide. On the run, Gordon dragged a low shot wide of Edouard Mendy’s near post in a rare opening for the hosts but the half ended goalless.
Two minutes into the second half, the game burst into life. Richarlison pressed last man Azpilicueta high and forced a blunder from the Spaniard, charging down his pass and latching on to Demarai Gray’s prod to sneak it low beyond Mendy.
The Toffees should have increased their lead right away, but Vitaliy Mykolenko’s finish, after being slid in by Abdoulaye Doucoure, went high and wide.
At the opposite end, Jordan Pickford practically won the tie for Everton shortly before the hour mark. Mason Mount tried to breach the Everton line as Azpilicueta’s shot hit the inside of his post, and the England international managed to paw away Mount’s rebound. Then, from the ensuing corner, Antonio Rudiger was blocked by the goalkeeper’s face just as he appeared to be on his way to scoring for Chelsea.
Richarlison almost increased his advantage minutes later, forcing Mendy into an uncomfortable save with a shot from an extraordinarily tight angle. Pickford was back at it again, this time blocking Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s ferocious drive with an outstretched hand.
In a frenzied finish to the game, there were a slew of near misses. Gray’s effort went just wide of the post when he should have scored, before Hakim Ziyech and Gordon both had fine strikes deflected away at the other end.
Pickford’s final action was a superb stop in the second of seven minutes of added time. Marcos Alonso passed to Mateo Kovacic, who attempted a low finish inside the near post, but England’s number one saved excellently.
Everton remain in the bottom three as a result of the outcome, but with a game in hand, they are still within touching distance of safety and their survival is in their own hands. The next game will be against Leicester.
Chelsea, meanwhile, are still in third place, but Tottenham and Arsenal are closing in on them ahead of their next match against Wolves.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
