View: Everton don’t need James Rodriguez to conquer Chelsea
Carlo Ancelotti has revealed that James Rodriguez is likely to miss tonight’s game against Chelsea, though he will receive a final check [evertonfc.com].
The Colombian playmaker has been absent from Everton’s previous two Premier League games against Southampton and West Brom with an undisclosed injury issue.
The Blues were able to beat both the Saints and the Baggies without James, and they’ll need to win without him again when they face Thomas Tuchel’s side.
Everton are just one point and once place behind Chelsea in the Premier League table with a game in hand, so tonight’s game will be crucial to both clubs in their pursuit of Champions League football.
Should they win at Stamford Bridge they will leapfrog the southwest London outfit into fourth place, while West Ham could do the same if they beat Leeds tonight.
With James unlikely to play once again, a victory for Everton would show just how far the club have come under Ancelotti, with James not necessary to ensure success.
Despite being Everton’s marquee summer signing and a superstar in a smaller pond, the Toffees have pulled off a number of impressive performances without the former Real Madrid man this season.
James was absent when Everton beat Chelsea, Arsenal and Leicester in December, while they’ve only lost once without him, winning the other seven.
With five goals and four assists in the Premier League this season, James’ influence has certainly been felt, but the Blues aren’t a lesser team without him playing.
Ancelotti has structured his team to succeed no matter the personnel, with Gylfi Sigurdsson having impressed in the past few weeks in James’ stead.
No other player for Everton has the same deft technical ability on the ball as Rodriguez, but against Chelsea it’s fair to assume the home side will have the lion’s-share of the possession.
Should James be passed fit Everton would gladly welcome his return, but if he is to miss out then the club will still have more than enough to hand Tuchel his first defeat as Chelsea boss.
In other Everton news, Roberto Martinez labelled former employer Everton a ‘very special club’ when discussing Carlo Ancelotti’s impact on Merseyside.