Chelsea vs Everton – 16TH December
As always before the game, I put on a bet to spice up the match as a neutral! On this occasion I put on a request a bet with SkySports, I had Chelsea keep a clean sheet, to get less than 20+ booking points, 8 or fewer corners, and for Everton to get less than 4 corners.
My pre-game prediction was Chelsea 3-0 Everton.
On my way to the stadium, I was introduced to the chant viva Ross Barkley. Viva Ross Barkley, he left the scouse cos they robbed his house viva, Ross Barkley. I think this was my favorite chant of the night by far and it made it even more worthwhile because he was once an Evertonian.
As is accustomed to most matches I’ve been to recently I came straight from work, barely made it to the ground in time but that didn’t stop us from chugging a beer quick before heading out! No time for food which was not ideal. Singha was the brand of beer and I have to be honest it was the best beer I’ve had at the football since I have done this and for £5.70 it's exactly what I expected.
Now to the seats, I can safely say I have never sat that close to the away fans before as we were next to the stewards. Before I go any further all credit to the Everton Fans that made the 220-mile journey there was no guarantee your club would do well, if anything it was likely you’d do bad as your form was not great and Chelsea is strong team. So full respect!!
Now for the First Half, Chelsea was controlling everything and looked so silky with their passing. The first real big chance fell to Reece James but he was wide of the target, with his talent and ability it really should have been a goal. In that first 15 minutes, Chelsea could have been 2 goals up if it hadn’t been for Pickford. Pickford was everywhere in that half and deserves all the plaudits. Ziyech goes under the radar and rarely players but my god does the guy have the skill, he was dummying the ball and taking people on playing with complete freedom and it was a joy because he schooled a very youthful Everton side, without Ziyech, Mount, and James Chelsea looked clueless.
It was half time and I wanted food! If I’m going to review everything properly I need to eat something. The queue was a joke and I waited the entire 15 minutes and still got nothing, we decided to head back to the seats as we didn’t want to miss anything but me being me 10 minutes later I ran to the bar to grab a hot dog. From what I was told I didn’t miss much and I still got my food. The hot dog was okay but the same as any other hot dog you’d get at a stadium and petrol station. For £5.60 I really wouldn’t normally buy it but it's all part of the experience.
In the second half, the same again Chelsea still has a majority of the possession and the shots but as we know in the premier league this means nothing. Everton are playing for that one moment and if it's coming from anyone its Doucoure, I was a big fan of his at Watford and I’m an even bigger fan now he is some player and at the ripe old age of 28, he desperately should be at a top 4-6 side in Europe in the next couple years. Barkley is on and as predicted he is being booed by the Evertonians. With their sustained pressure Chelsea get their much-deserved lead through mason mount and it was a tidy finish, in the end, Pickford could do nothing. Pickford was sensational in this game but my top pick of his saves was against Thiago Silva from his head chance from a corner. Everton break and win a free kick in a very dangerous position, with a delightfully whipped delivery from Gordon and an instinctive finish from Braithwaite Everton were somehow level. The Evertonians are going mad!!! I don’t blame them because the entire game up till that moment was shocking and now they had a reason to sing, even though it felt like they only had one chant.
Chelsea pushing and pushing for that winner which opened up the game for the odd Everton counterattack. Unfortunately, there were no more goals and it ended 1-1.
Safe to say my bet was completely wrong and so too my prediction but I genuinely really enjoyed the game, Stamford bridge is an incredible stadium and I would recommend going, it didn’t feel like the most modern stadium in the world but the quality was great. Next up I’d love to do an away day there. Going with a friend that supports the team is the ideal situation because either way you can give them grief if they lose or they win and they’re in a good mood! Travel home was nice and easy as well which topped everything off nicely.
My man of the match goes to Jordan Pickford England’s Number 1