Chelsea They failed to make it nine straight wins in all competitions, drawing 0-0 against Everton at Goodison Park in a rainy and windy match.
The Blues still sit second in the Premier League but failed to convert their chance to restore a four-point advantage over third-placed Arsenal.
Enzo Marescaside He had 75% of the ballHe created three big chances, took 12 shots and produced just 0.77 xG per match. This was the first time since the opening match of the season that Chelsea failed to score, losing 2-0 to Manchester City.
Despite drawing 0-0, there were some positives for Maresca and his team to take from the game, and they kept their fourth clean sheet in the Premier League this season, with Robert Sanchez making some big saves and a certain defender putting in an excellent display.
Chelsea's best player against Everton
Tosin Adarabioyo was man of the match at the back for Chelsea on Sunday afternoon. He won five of his six ground duelswon three of his five aerial duels, completed three tackles, and dealt with Everton's long ball effectively.
Being in the middle of a back three, Tosin was also required to direct the play, He made eight long balls out of 12 attemptsHe made 124 touches and made 102/111 accurate passes (92%).
But a poor performance from one particular individual stood out, proving what many already thought, which is that Maresca needs another option in this position in order to maximize the team in all situations of the game against all different types of opponents.
Performance in numbers
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Chelsea's biggest poor performance against Everton
It was Nicholas Jackson The match was rated 5/10 by The ExpressHe wasted two clear opportunities that could have changed the direction of the entire match.
The 23-year-old striker has been in good form so far for the Blues this season, He scored nine goals in 16 Premier League matchesHe also provided three assists in the 1,269 minutes he played in the English Premier League this season. However, he was unable to convert his chances against Everton, heading the ball against the post from close range, and failing to put a 1-on-1 past Pickford in the first half.
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Nicholas Jackson's performance against Everton |
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|---|---|
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Statistics |
Jackson |
|
minutes |
75 |
|
Touches |
30 |
|
Screenshots |
3 |
|
Great opportunities were missed |
2 |
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Successful dribbles |
2/5 |
|
Accurate passes |
13/15 |
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Key passes |
1 |
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He won ground duels |
5/10 |
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He won aerial duels |
0/1 |
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Statistics taken from SofaScore |
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Not only was Jackson wasting his few chances in front of goal, he also failed to make the usual impact in other areas, losing five of his ten ground duels (50%), losing his only aerial duel of the match, and only completing two of his five dribble attempts in the match.
Chelsea could have threatened in the penalty area in order to force Everton to return to their own penalty area and pass offensive crosses into the penalty area from the likes of Jadon Sancho and Pedro Neto. But the Blues currently lack a different profile at the striker position, often having to bring on Christopher Nkunku from the bench as a striker, which is not his best position.
Whether Maresca requests it in the January window, in order to provide him with more options to change games off the bench, or if Todd Buhle and company decide to wait until the summer to address this, this is certainly an area of the team that will do so. It will be addressed at one point or another.
