Match overview
Chelsea left Hill Dickinson Stadium with a 2–0 Premier League win over Everton, with Pedro Neto scoring both goals after a goalless first half. The visitors found the breakthrough immediately after the restart, Neto finishing with his left foot in the 46th minute from Jorrel Hato’s assist, before adding a second left-footed goal in the 90th minute.
The result reflected Chelsea’s greater output in the key attacking measures. They recorded 18 shots to Everton’s six, put seven efforts on target to Everton’s five, and created 14 key passes compared with six. Chelsea also had a narrow edge in possession, 53% to 47%, and completed 384 of 454 passes at an 85% success rate. Everton completed 323 of 402, at 80%.
The decisive second half
The opening half ended 0–0, but the match changed within a minute of the restart. Hato supplied Neto, whose left-footed finish put Chelsea ahead at 46 minutes. It was a crucial moment in a contest in which Everton had created two big chances but missed both of them.
Everton remained a threat in certain areas of the game. The home side registered 57 dangerous attacks to Chelsea’s 43, produced 20 crosses to Chelsea’s 15, and had five corners. Chelsea, however, had seven corners and created the same number of big chances—two—while missing one.
Neto’s second goal arrived in the 90th minute and settled the result. His two strikes accounted for all of Chelsea’s goals and earned him the player-of-the-match award with a rating of 9.14.
Control and resistance
Chelsea’s advantage was also evident in their work without the ball and in contested situations. They won 47 duels to Everton’s 40, made 13 tackles to Everton’s seven, and won eight tackles compared with four. Chelsea also blocked five shots, while Everton recorded none.
Everton’s goalkeeper Jordan Pickford made four saves, while Chelsea goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez made five. Chelsea hit the woodwork once and recorded 10 shots from inside the penalty area, alongside eight from outside it. Everton’s six shots were all listed from inside the box.
The match was competitive and carried a disciplinary edge, with seven yellow cards in total. Chelsea received four, for Pedro Neto, Josh Acheampong, Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer; Everton received three, for Harrison Armstrong, James Tarkowski and Christian Nørgaard. No red cards were recorded.
Team changes
Everton made three substitutions: Tyrique George replaced Ainsley Maitland-Niles in the 55th minute, while Brennan Johnson and Christian Nørgaard entered in the 85th minute for Jack Grealish and Armstrong respectively.
Chelsea made five changes. Mike Penders replaced Martínez in the 75th minute, and Roméo Lavia, Marco Palestra and Danny Welbeck came on at 90+2 for Moisés Caicedo, Hato and João Pedro. Geovany Quenda replaced Neto at 90+12.
Chelsea’s win was built on a fast second-half start, a larger volume of chances and Neto’s clinical contribution at both ends of the half. Everton had moments and five shots on target, but could not turn them into a goal.