Chelsea have done so well this season that I do not think anyone could dispute the fact that they have earned their place at the top of the Premiership. When you have Petr Cech in goal, John Terry in defence, Frank Lampard in midfield and Didier Drogba in attack, you are always going to dazzle. Having said that, the Blues come into this home game having not won any of their last 3 games, drawing (and subsequently losing) against Blackburn and APOEL and losing to Manchester City. At home in the Premier League though? Brilliant - 7 wins out of 7, scoring an average of close to 3 goals per home game. They welcome the visit of an Everton side that have struggled due to their injury woes. Everton have now lost 5 of their 7 road games in the League. They have lost their last 2 away games in the Premiership against Manchester United and Hull, and you just feel that they would be content with a draw in London today.
Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti is missing Alex, Jose Bosingwa, Deco, Michael Essien, Salomon Kalou and Daniel Sturridge. With the quality that they have, however, I do not think there is anything to worry about. Petr Cech is to be in goal, covered in defence by John Terry, Ashley Cole, Ricardo Carvalho and Branislav Ivanovic. Frank Lampard, Michael Ballack, John Obi Mikel and Joe Cole should play across the midfield, with Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba playing upfront. For Everton manager David Moyes, he has Tim Cahill suspended, which is a major blow. Injuries will rule out Mikel Arteta, Phil Jagielka, Phil Neville, Victor Anichebe, James Vaughan, Leon Osman and Joseph Yobo, while there are doubts over Sylvain Distin and Dan Gosling. John Heitinga returns from a one-game ban though. Without Cahill in midfield, Jack Rodwell would need to fill big shoes here as he tries to complement the international class of Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, Marouane Fellaini and Steven Pienaar.
Everton have not lost by 2 goals or more in any of their last 5 visits to Stamford Bridge, and going by that fact the handicap of 1.75 is a no-brainer right? Well, no. I think Chelsea will run riot here. I think in the continued absence of Phil Neville, Phil Jagialke and Mikel Arteta, Tim Cahill has been one of the key players holding the Everton midfield together. With the Australian international missing through suspension, I am expecting a big game from John Obi Mikel as he anchors for the Londoners. Frank Lampard should have a field day powering through the middle looking to score and assist the strikers. Everton fought back to earn a point against Tottenham last time out but I think that should be as good as it gets for the Merseysiders. Ancelotti knows that going 4 games without a win is going to be close to crisis point for a team of the stature of Chelsea and the Italian would ensure an easy victory. Expect attacking football, expect goals.
Fate85 Recommends:
Chelsea @ -1.75 Handicap
Total Goals: Over
Chelsea @ -1.75 Handicap
Total Goals: Over
