Paul Merson predicts result of Everton clash against Chelsea
Everton are back in action later this week with a trip to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea on Thursday (16 December), and getting a result would be huge.
Paul Merson does not see that happening, though, after they lost seven of their last nine games, predicting a comfortable 3-0 win for Thomas Tuchel’s side while previewing the clash in his Sportskeeda column.
The Toffees will be looking to bounce back from Sunday’s (12 December) 3-1 defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, but whether they have what it takes to do so against one of the title challengers remains to be seen.
Merson said: “I think this is an easy one to call, so I predict a 3-0 win for Chelsea. Everton are sitting ducks at the moment and I just don’t give them a chance.
“They were fortunate to beat Arsenal and didn’t do anything extraordinary that day, they just showed a lot of heart and scored an absolute peach to win it late in the game.
“If you look at Everton’s Premier League record in recent weeks, it’s been dismal. They’ve only got five points from a possible 30 and are bottom of the table if you only consider results from October.
“Chelsea, on the other hand, weren’t great against Leeds, but they still scored three goals and won the game.
“The only question for Chelsea is Romelu Lukaku’s situation. He’s clearly back fully fit now, but when is he going to get back into the team? If he stays on the bench for a few more games, people will start to wonder if Thomas Tuchel really fancies him or not.”
No chance?
Chelsea are not firing on all cylinders right now as they did when 2021-22 started, winning just three of their last six league games, but they still have more than enough in the tank to beat the error-prone Toffees.
Rafa Benitez’s side made three goal-costing mistakes against Palace, and that has been a recurrent theme all season.
They have shipped 28 goals in 16 games, and shutting out a Chelsea attack that have scored 38 goals looks impossible.
Everton have scored 20 times, but finding the back of the net against a team that have shipped only 11 goals could prove to be herculean.
The Goodison Park outfit are struggling at both ends of the pitch, and they will need a miracle to leave Stamford Bridge with any points on Thursday.
Not even their most optimistic fans would tip them to pull off a shock against the west London giants, and it could turn out to be a humiliating defeat if care is not taken.
In other Everton news, the Toffees are plotting January loan-to-buy bid for centre-mid hailed by Jack Grealish last month.
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