Everton can continue resurgence against Chelsea
Everton host Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday aiming to continue their recent resurgence under new manager Sam Allardyce.
The Toffees are unbeaten since Big Sam took over at the end of November, with Monday’s 3-1 victory over Swansea City taking them up to ninth in the table.
Chelsea head into the game third in the standings having lost just once in their last ten games, but this weekend’s match will be a big test of their top four credentials.
Allardyce is likely to name an unchanged side against Chelsea, while Marcos Alonso should return for the visitors after missing Wednesday’s Carabao Cup tie at Bournemouth through suspension.
Chelsea will definitely be without David Luiz after manager Antonio Conte confirmed the defender will be sidelined for at least another three weeks.
The Brazilian continues to be linked with a move away after a reported bust-up with his Chelsea boss, but Conte has insisted his lack of action has been down to a knee problem.
The 30-year-old is not expected to return until the Premier League clash with Leicester City on January 13.
Despite their recent upturn in fortunes Everton are priced at 9/2 in the betting to win the game, with Chelsea available at 8/13. The draw is on offer at 14/5.
Allardyce has stamped his mark on Everton, with their defence looking much more organised than was the case under former boss Ronald Koeman.
They have conceded just twice in five games under Allardyce and although three of those games were against bottom six sides they look completely rejuvenated under their new manager.
Former England striker Wayne Rooney appears to have benefitted most from the change in manager, scoring six goals in his last five league appearances for the club.
He is priced at 3/1 to score any time this Saturday and that looks tempting.
Everton haven’t beaten Chelsea in the Premier League since a 3-1 success back in 2015 and they are priced at 50/1 to match that feat this weekend.
Chelsea have bounced back from their shock 1-0 defeat at West Ham United with victories over Huddersfield Town and Southampton, but they are yet to hit the same form they showed during their title winning season this time around.
Eden Hazard has been in decent form over the past few weeks and could be a worth checking out at 4/1 in the first goalscorer market.
Everton’s new found resilience is likely to make a recurrence of last season’s 3-0 drubbing by Chelsea at Goodison Park unlikely, although punters who fancy a repeat performance would be rewarded with odds of 11/1.
A positive result for either side on Saturday would set them up nicely for a reasonable run of fixtures over the coming weeks.
Everton face West Bromwich Albion (twice), Bournemouth and Leicester City, although fixtures against Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur will test their improvement under Allardyce.
Chelsea’s most difficult match over the next few weeks is at Arsenal on January 3, with games against Brighton and Hove Albion (twice), Stoke City, Leicester and Bournemouth all looking winnable.
Allardyce is sure to have Everton fired up to face Chelsea this weekend and their home record during 2017 suggests the visitors are in for a difficult afternoon.
Only Arsenal (16) have won more Premier League games at home than Everton (15) this year and with Chelsea only managing clean sheets in three of their eight away fixtures this term the home side are fancied to take something from the game.
Odds of 14/5 for a draw look good value and it’s a result that would keep Allardyce’s rebuilding job at Everton firmly on track.