Chelsea vs. Everton: Tactical Preview of Premier League Game
Everton visit Stamford Bridge on Wednesday evening in the hopes of banishing some very questionable recent form but face league leaders Chelsea on their own patch. Can Roberto Martinez's men pull of a surprise to shake up the title race?
Chelsea News
Chelsea are unlikely to make surgical changes to their setup following a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Aston Villa.
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Diego Costa is still banned, per WhoScored.com, and will leave the race to start up front to Loic Remy and Didier Drogba. The latter performed very poorly at Villa Park on Saturday and would be the surprise selection.
Cesc Fabregas is fit again and would start if ready, meaning Ramires would drop out of the XI despite playing well in the last two games. Gary Cahill should keep his place ahead of Kurt Zouma, while Willian's strong showing in Birmingham could stave off a Juan Cuadrado start a little longer.
Everton News
Everton have decidedly worse injury issues to contend with; Leighton Baines, James McCarthy, Muhamed Besic, Aiden McGeady and Steven Naismith are all listed as doubtful by WhoScored.com, while Tim Howard and Leon Osman will definitely miss out.
Aaron Lennon, signed on loan on deadline day in January from Tottenham Hotspur, could start his first game as Christian Atsu, despite finishing an Africa Cup of Nations campaign with Ghana, will be nowhere close to ready.
The doubts should clear up and Roberto Martinez should be able to start a first XI, but it's not the fitness that's a concern: it's the mentality of a side badly under-performing.
Key Point 1: Hazard vs. Coleman
The key area on the pitch when these two teams meet—besides the obvious middle section which can win or lose a team the game—is the flank on which Eden Hazard and Seamus Coleman operate.
Not only will the Belgian star have room to run into and work given Coleman's adventurous tendencies, he'll also be able to create space for runners inside of right centre-back John Stones.
Hazard had a similar matchup, tendencies-wise, against Lazar Markovic in the Capital One Cup but failed to take advantage, though Liverpool's dominant play on the night contributed to penning the winger in.
Everton won't be anywhere close to as assured on the ball—they're in a real rut right now—and the Blues' first option should be to release Hazard on the left and in behind Coleman. If he can drag Stones over to cover, too, that will release Remy's wicked runs and really punish this back line.
Key Point 2: Back to Basics?
The Everton of 2013-14 attacked in fantastic fashion, embodying the spirit of Martinez's Wigan Athletic side but adding the killer ingredient of enhanced quality players.
This season, however, £28 million man Romelu Lukaku and wonderboy Ross Barkley have failed to light up Goodison Park. When Naismith is your go-to guy, it's an issue—no matter how well the Scot has performed.
Martinez has been very inconsistent in his placing of players; he's been switching shapes, playing Lukaku wide and limiting some difference-makers to cameo roles. He's also battled injuries to the likes of Steven Pienaar and struggled to find a consistent 18, let alone a consistent 11.
It might be best to go back to basics, to revert to what made Everton a consistent sixth-placed force under David Moyes. The Baines-Pienaar or Baines-Bryan Oviedo partnerships, in addition to Coleman dominating on the opposite flank, is what forms the basis of the Toffees' threat.
In searching for an identity and a way to reignite the attack, this may be the best policy.
