Premier League 2020-21
Chelsea vs Everton: 3 things to look forward to | Premier League 2019-20
Chelsea beat Liverpool 2-0 to advance further in the FA Cup
Vansh
Modified 08 Mar 2020, 13:59 IST
3 things to look out for as Frank Lampard's Chelsea faces Carlo Ancelotti's Everton at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea faces Everton at Stamford Bridge in what promises to be a cracking contest. Carlo Ancelotti returns to the Bridge leading the side which ended his Chelsea stint. Everton has had a strange season as Marco Silva failed to get the Toffees on track. Ancelotti took Everton after being sacked by Napoli. After the Italian's arrival, Everton has grown into a more complete team as they have improved in all departments.
On the other hand, Chelsea has had an inconsistent season as Frank Lampard has failed to find the correct rhythm. With defensive fragilities and a doubtful goalkeeping position, Chelsea has all sorts of problems at the moment. Moreover, around nine first-team players are injured and the squad is in dire need of some fresh energy.
What is even more interesting is that Lampard will be going head-to-head against Carlo Ancelloti, a manager who he has played under. Lampard and Ancelotti shared a great bond of mutual respect and it will be fascinating to see how the two managers approach the game.
Here, we take a look at 3 things to look out for as Chelsea face Everton.
#1 Chelsea's goalkeeper
Kepa Arrizabalaga is expected to guard the Chelsea net today
Kepa Arrizabalaga featured against Liverpool in the FA Cup after sitting on the bench for six straight games. Lampard fielded Willy Caballero in all those games and the Argentinian was decent as he made some crucial saves.
Before the game against Liverpool, Frank Lampard had maintained that he was trying to bring some competition into the squad and he had no intention of alienating Kepa Arrizabalaga. What was even more shocking was that Caballero started against Bayern Munich as well. This was interpreted as the end of Kepa's Chelsea career by many as the game against the Bavarians was the most important game of the season for Lampard's men.
Against Liverpool, Arrizabalaga started shakily as some of his distribution wasn't exactly tidy. However, slowly but steadily, the Spaniard grew into the game and commanded his box well. He managed to keep a clean sheet, something which has been rare for the Blues so far and had his second-best game of the season in terms of the saves made.
With Tottenham, Wolves, and United currently struggling, Chelsea's game against Everton is the ideal opportunity for the Blues to cement a lead in the top four fight. Whether or not Arrizabalaga has convinced Lampard is anyone's guess, but the Blues' faithful should expect to see the world's most expensive keeper guarding their net today.
Published 08 Mar 2020, 13:59 IST
Premier League 2020-21 Chelsea Everton Jorge Luiz Frello Filho(Jorginho) Kepa Arrizabalaga