Everton Beat Chelsea 3-1 in First EPL Match Since Marco Silva's Sacking

Everton beat Chelsea 3-1 in their first match since the departure of former manager Marco Silva, courtesy of a brace from Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Richarlison gave the Toffees an early lead, and Calvert-Lewin doubled the advantage after the break.

Mateo Kovacic hit back almost immediately, but Chelsea's comeback fell short, with Calvert-Lewin liberating Goodison Park with six minutes left to play.

The Toffees sacked Silva after the 5-2 midweek loss to rivals Liverpool, a result that dropped the team into the relegation zone.

Everton made a dream start, taking the lead after just five minutes. Chelsea left Djibril Sidibe with far too much space and time to cross, and Richarlison powered a strong header past Kepa Arrizabalaga.

Per The Athletic's Greg O'Keeffe, it was a reward for the Toffees' intense start, something Goodison Park hadn't seen in some time:

The high press gave the Blues all kinds of fits, and while they managed to keep control of the ball, they barely got near Jordan Pickford in the first 30 minutes. Everton had their chances to double the lead, but Calvert-Lewin aimed his shot right at Kepa, and Alex Iwobi's pass for Lucas Digne had far too much pace on it to lead to a goal.

Reece James flicked on a cross wide of the mark, and minutes later, Tammy Abraham also couldn't get a clean-enough connection on the ball to find the target.

The Athletic's Simon Johnson was not impressed with the Blues:

Their play improved toward the end of the half, however, with Christian Pulisic, in particular, becoming more involved. The American nearly lofted the perfect cross into Willian's path, but Digne returned just in time to deny him a look on goal.

The second half started off in spectacular fashion, with a great Everton chance and two goals inside the first 10 minutes.

Calvert-Lewin aimed a header over the bar before finding more success minutes later, courtesy of some clumsy defending from both Andreas Christensen and Kurt Zouma.

The forward has a tendency to reserve his goals for  the biggest stage:

Chelsea hit back almost immediately, however, with Kovacic beating Pickford and Abraham narrowly avoiding being offside and impeding the stopper. EiF enjoy watching the Croat:

Morgan Schneiderlin nearly restored the two-goal lead, narrowly missing the target with a shot from distance. Kovacic followed suit, with the same result, and Mason Mount also couldn't find his shooting boots.

The Toffees had the better chances during the tense finale, and it was Calvert-Lewin who gave them the third goal they so desperately needed. Again the Blues were at fault, with Kepa all but gifting Theo Walcott the ball and Everton eventually working the ball past the stopper.

Pulisic had two late chances to keep the comeback alive, but he couldn't find the net with either effort.

What's Next?

The Blues host Lille in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday. Everton visit Manchester United in the Premier League next Sunday.