Pedro Neto scored at both ends of the second half as Chelsea won 2-0 at Everton on Saturday, ending the hosts' unbeaten start to the Premier League season. The win was overshadowed by a head injury to goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, who was carried off on a stretcher after a clash with Jarrad Branthwaite and taken to hospital.
Match facts
- Result: Everton 0-2 Chelsea (half-time 0-0)
- Competition: Premier League, Matchweek 7
- Venue: Hill Dickinson Stadium, Liverpool
- Scorers: Everton - none; Chelsea - Pedro Neto 46', 90'
- Red cards: None
- Attendance: 52,271
- Next in the Premier League: Arsenal v Everton, Saturday 24 October; Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur, Saturday 24 October
How the match unfolded
Xabi Alonso made one change from the 5-1 win over Bournemouth, bringing in Jorrel Hato at left-back after Pep Chavarria picked up a knock in training on Friday. Chelsea wore their third kit for the first time.
The early-afternoon game took a while to come alive. Cole Palmer forced a low save from Jordan Pickford in the 15th minute, but Everton had the better of the first half. Their best chance came in the 28th minute, when Thierno Barry headed straight at Martínez from close range after a corner. Two minutes later Martínez tipped a Jack Grealish volley over the bar.
The first half was scrappy and bad-tempered, with five players booked before the break. Morgan Rogers was cautioned after a flare-up with James Tarkowski, and Everton felt the Chelsea forward should have been shown a second yellow card for a late challenge on James Garner just before half-time. In between, in the 41st minute, Moisés Caicedo met a corner with a fierce volley that beat Pickford but struck the woodwork. Neto also forced a fingertip save from the England goalkeeper in first-half stoppage time.
Chelsea went ahead within a minute of the restart. Rogers sent Hato away down the left, and his low cutback from the byline took a touch off Tarkowski before Neto controlled it and fired low past Pickford.
In the 66th minute, Martínez and Branthwaite clashed heads as they both went for a Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall free-kick. Branthwaite was able to continue after treatment, but Martínez needed lengthy medical attention on the pitch before he was carried off. Mike Penders, 21, replaced him in the 75th minute to make his Premier League debut.
Everton rarely threatened after that and managed only two shots in the second half. With 11 minutes added on, Chelsea made sure of the points in the 90th minute. Jordan Henderson's free-kick hit the Everton wall, the ball dropped to Neto, and he rolled a composed finish into the bottom corner.
Martínez taken to hospital
Martínez, 34, went straight to hospital after being carried off. Speaking to TNT Sports after the game, Alonso said: "As far as I know, he left the stadium conscious. Right now he is in the hospital doing precautionary tests."
What it means for both clubs
The win lifts Chelsea to fourth on 13 points. Martínez and Penders also combined for the club's first Premier League clean sheet since 17 January, ending a run of 22 league games in which Chelsea had conceded. It follows last weekend's 5-1 win over Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge.
Everton started the day as one of three unbeaten Premier League sides, alongside Brentford and a Manchester City team that won 3-0 at Liverpool last weekend. David Moyes' side stay on 10 points after their first league defeat of the season, a week after a 2-2 draw at Hull. Everton travel to Arsenal next Saturday, and Chelsea host Tottenham Hotspur later the same day.
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