Everton 0-0 Chelsea: Player ratings as the Toffees battle out goalless draw

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90min

·22 December 2024

Everton 0-0 Chelsea: Player ratings as the Toffees battle out goalless draw

Everton held high-flying Chelsea to a 0-0 draw at Goodison Park on Sunday afternoon.

On a day with weather so bad that even Sean Dyche was wearing a jacket, both sides struggled to find any fluency. Fighting against the elements as well as each other, Chelsea carved open the better chances in the first 45 minutes.

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Nicolas Jackson found himself taking - and missing - two golden openings for the Blues. Thwarted initially by the sprawling figure of a typically enthusiastic Jordan Pickford, Jackson was then rebuffed by the woodwork, heading onto a post from point-blank range at a corner kick.

Everton had been limited to just a pair of touches inside Chelsea's penalty area in the first half, but Jack Harrison found room on the edge of the six-yard box within five minutes of the restart. Sanchez, much like his opposite number, quickly rushed off his line to smother the dawdling forward.

Chelsea were oddly passive after the restart, ambling around the blue half of Stanley Park without any purpose. The goalless stalemate leaves Chelsea one point behind league-leading Liverpool, who have two games in hand on the Blues. Everton, by comparison, have opened up a four-point cushion above the relegation zone.