Spurs shouldn't expect Dele Alli to pay anytime soon and Everton be cursed
There are two ways to lose a game: the normal way and the Everton way. More injuries and Dele Alli's official retirement should be enough.
A lot can change in three months. When Everton and Chelsea last met in May, Richarlison and Timo Werner led the respective lines. Alex Iwobi played at the back to ensure there was central space in midfield for Fabian Delph. Antonio Rudiger rallied the visiting defence.
Similarly, many have remained the same. Everton remain prone to both inexplicable mistakes and frustrating injuries and their limits are painfully clear. Chelsea are still a great team as close to falling back into the peloton as they are to joining the leaders.
And that's the problem with scrappy 1-0 wins: the margins between victory and defeat are so thin that it becomes difficult to avoid outcome bias. Everton shot nine to 17 at the end of last season and won. They had eight efforts to 15 at the start of this campaign and lost.
But some things can be checked from the opening game. Frank Lampard really needs to clean up the bad juju surrounding Goodison Park, for example. A team already often literally crippled by injury lost Ben Godfrey in the first half and Yerry Mina in the second.
The first was hoisted by the firecracker of his own errant back pass. That he was taken out of the game, only for Jordan Pickford to give clearance directly to Kai Havertz and encourage Godfrey to make amends, which only added to the Everton of it all.
The papier-mache Yerry Mina joined Godfrey in the treatment room midway through the second half, his left ankle struggling under the weight of the narrative.
Let's hope Lampard stuck to the script he used for most of last season as those setbacks, combined with Abdoulaye Doucoure's disconcerting tackle to concede the decisive penalty, looked like a continuation of 2021/22 .
That kind of bad luck creates a deadly mix with a choppy summer transfer window and a manager stuck between what he wants to do and what he can do. Whether it's Lampard's own weaknesses or those of his team, Everton can only compete so far. Their game plan works until it doesn't.
They created very few actual notes. James Tarkowski got a fine save from Edouard Mendy and Demarai Gray had a shot blocked by Thiago Silva on the break, but Chelsea were more troubled by those intermittent roars from Goodison than anything Everton actually mentioned. p>
Their attacking status is particularly discouraging. We can't count on Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Salomon Rondon for different reasons.
Anthony Gordon was deployed as a nominal centre-forward against Chelsea, but what he offers in terms of effort and work-rate, the 21-year-old lacks cunning - especially against a defense as experienced as Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Kalidou Koulibaly.
Dele Alli was touted by Lampard as a possible solution, but a moment later summed up the last years of his career. Nathan Patterson jumped on a rare error from Koulibaly to launch a counter-attack, slipping Alli into it.
Instead of a first shot, his crumbling confidence was betrayed by a heavy touch as he almost tackled himself before limply pushing the ball for a goal kick while lying down on the ground.
In his case, it may be that the form is temporary and the class is permanent. The player from his first three seasons at Tottenham is, for all intents and purposes, retired. Jose Mourinho may have been yesterday's manager to some, but his suggestion that Alli's brother replaced him years ago was prescient.
The first element of his potential total of £40million is due to Tottenham when Alli plays his 20th game at Everton. Daniel Levy will not frantically refresh his NatWest app.
Chelsea should be content to have controlled this game in difficult circumstances, given the atmosphere. Everton were fine, but to rely on three worst teams for a second consecutive season is asking for a date with problems. New signings are imminent, but they'll have to sprint to the ground - just try not to injure yourself while doing so.
There are two ways to lose a game: the normal way and the Everton way. More injuries and Dele Alli's official retirement should be enough.
A lot can change in three months. When Everton and Chelsea last met in May, Richarlison and Timo Werner led the respective lines. Alex Iwobi played at the back to ensure there was central space in midfield for Fabian Delph. Antonio Rudiger rallied the visiting defence.
Similarly, many have remained the same. Everton remain prone to both inexplicable mistakes and frustrating injuries and their limits are painfully clear. Chelsea are still a great team as close to falling back into the peloton as they are to joining the leaders.
And that's the problem with scrappy 1-0 wins: the margins between victory and defeat are so thin that it becomes difficult to avoid outcome bias. Everton shot nine to 17 at the end of last season and won. They had eight efforts to 15 at the start of this campaign and lost.
But some things can be checked from the opening game. Frank Lampard really needs to clean up the bad juju surrounding Goodison Park, for example. A team already often literally crippled by injury lost Ben Godfrey in the first half and Yerry Mina in the second.
The first was hoisted by the firecracker of his own errant back pass. That he was taken out of the game, only for Jordan Pickford to give clearance directly to Kai Havertz and encourage Godfrey to make amends, which only added to the Everton of it all.
The papier-mache Yerry Mina joined Godfrey in the treatment room midway through the second half, his left ankle struggling under the weight of the narrative.
Let's hope Lampard stuck to the script he used for most of last season as those setbacks, combined with Abdoulaye Doucoure's disconcerting tackle to concede the decisive penalty, looked like a continuation of 2021/22 .
That kind of bad luck creates a deadly mix with a choppy summer transfer window and a manager stuck between what he wants to do and what he can do. Whether it's Lampard's own weaknesses or those of his team, Everton can only compete so far. Their game plan works until it doesn't.
They created very few actual notes. James Tarkowski got a fine save from Edouard Mendy and Demarai Gray had a shot blocked by Thiago Silva on the break, but Chelsea were more troubled by those intermittent roars from Goodison than anything Everton actually mentioned. p>
Their attacking status is particularly discouraging. We can't count on Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Salomon Rondon for different reasons.
Anthony Gordon was deployed as a nominal centre-forward against Chelsea, but what he offers in terms of effort and work-rate, the 21-year-old lacks cunning - especially against a defense as experienced as Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Kalidou Koulibaly.
Dele Alli was touted by Lampard as a possible solution, but a moment later summed up the last years of his career. Nathan Patterson jumped on a rare error from Koulibaly to launch a counter-attack, slipping Alli into it.
Instead of a first shot, his crumbling confidence was betrayed by a heavy touch as he almost tackled himself before limply pushing the ball for a goal kick while lying down on the ground.
In his case, it may be that the form is temporary and the class is permanent. The player from his first three seasons at Tottenham is, for all intents and purposes, retired. Jose Mourinho may have been yesterday's manager to some, but his suggestion that Alli's brother replaced him years ago was prescient.
The first element of his potential total of £40million is due to Tottenham when Alli plays his 20th game at Everton. Daniel Levy will not frantically refresh his NatWest app.
Chelsea should be content to have controlled this game in difficult circumstances, given the atmosphere. Everton were fine, but to rely on three worst teams for a second consecutive season is asking for a date with problems. New signings are imminent, but they'll have to sprint to the ground - just try not to injure yourself while doing so.
What's Your Reaction?
