Sometimes a fixture can assume a symbolic importance. Wolves felt a barometer in Chelsea’s ultimately triumphant 2020-21 season. Frank Lampard’s Blues had been league leaders at the start of December but displayed a self-destructive streak by losing after leading at Molineux. That winter slide finished off Lampard.
Come January, Wolves were Thomas Tuchel’s first opponents. He reimagined Chelsea on the plane from France, designing a 3-4-3 formation, implementing it immediately, securing a shutout on his bow. It was the formation that won Chelsea the Champions League and the first of 31 clean sheets in his opening 50 games.
Now there have been none in the last six. Chelsea entered December as league leaders. Now they are four points behind Manchester City. History may not repeat itself in every respect — Tuchel lacks Lampard’s playing pedigree at Chelsea but his managerial success ought to render his position less perilous — but some parallels with the past are unwelcome.
If only temporarily, Chelsea have lost their reputation as the most frugal and ruthless side around. Instead, Tuchel has been bemoaning their wastefulness. “We're in exactly the place you don't want to be,” he said. “A good performance with no result is the worst place.”
A large squad has felt stretched by Covid cases and injuries. With Romelu Lukaku, Timo Werner and Callum Hudson-Odoi having tested positive, Tuchel will have to be resourceful in attack. The home-grown have provided the inspiration of late: Mason Mount has scored in four consecutive league games, while Reece James has been directly involved in nine goals from right wing-back.
Yet the problems are issues Tuchel has never had to confront in his time at Stamford Bridge: slipshod defending. Chelsea have lost seven points from winning positions in their last five games. Solidity has deserted them.
There is a case for arguing their record was artificially good when they had only let in four goals in 12 games; their underlying numbers were not that good and Edouard Mendy had been outstanding. The goalkeeper’s errors came in a flurry at West Ham. Jorginho’s mistakes led to goals against Manchester United and the Hammers. Until recently, Chelsea were flawless. When Arthur Masuaku’s mis-hit cross sailed in for West Ham’s winner, they felt luckless.
Chelsea 1 Everton 1: player ratings
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CHELSEA RATINGS: Edouard Mendy – 6 A quiet first half, though he did claim Gordon’s shot before the break. Was unable to keep a clean sheet when Branthwaite poked in a set piece. Getty -
Reece James – 8 The 22-year-old came close to netting his sixth of the season when Jorginho’s ball put him through on goal, but he was unable to find the target. He later forced Pickford into a comfortable save from a free-kick, before slipping a great ball to play in Mount for Chelsea’s opener. Getty -
Cesar Azpilicueta – 6 A quiet night at the back, he ventured forward and raced onto a loose ball in the box but couldn’t keep his effort low enough to avoid blazing it into the crowd. AP -
Thiago Silva – 7 The 37-year-old dominated and controlled everything in the first half, with an incredible 82 passes by half-time. Forced a great save from Pickford from a corner. Reuters -
Antonio Rudiger – 7 Calm in defence, he slipped through some great balls to open Everton and keep Chelsea on the front foot. Forced Pickford to make back-to-back saves as he looked for Chelsea’s second. Reuters -
Marcos Alonso – 6 Continued his run in the side with Chilwell out for the foreseeable future, and though he was quiet for much of the game he could have added an assist after finding Mount in the box. Getty -
Jorginho – 7 Provided a delightful ball to James in the opening exchanges and could have later scored himself with a rebounded shot from a free-kick. Booked. EPA -
Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 6 Unconvincing performance. Lost the ball and got himself booked after committing a foul while chasing Doucoure to stop an Everton attack. Headed over a corner just after the break. EPA -
Mason Mount – 8 A menace who kept Pickford busy all evening. The in-form midfielder saw one shot go narrowly wide in the early stages, before forcing the Everton keeper into another save at the half-hour mark. Made no mistake in the second half, however, scoring in his fourth consecutive match. EPA -
Hakim Ziyech – 7 Returned to the starting line-up and was extremely lively. He had an opportunity to score from a tight angle but his effort went wide, before a neat one-two with Pulisic ended in the Moroccan going narrowly wide. EPA -
Christian Pulisic – 7 With Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner testing positive for Covid-19, Pulisic looked unnerved by the pressure of leading the line. He could have netted his third goal of the season early on but his backheel couldn’t trouble Pickford in goal. Lively at the top with his pressing. AP -
SUBS: Ross Barkley (Loftus-Cheek 64’) – N/R A mixed reception as he made an appearance against his former side. EPA -
Saul Niguez (Alonso 64’) – N/R Wasteful with a cross back into the box as Chelsea looked for a winning goal. Getty -
Trevoh Chalobah (Azpilicueta 79’) – N/R Good work to distract Dobbin whose shot just rolled into Mendy’s hands. Solid shielding the ball from Gordon. Getty -
EVERTON RATINGS: Jordan Pickford – 9 Produced a big save to deny James, while punching away Ziyech’s effort and claiming Pulisic’s backheel flick. Got low for another Mount effort at goal, before another great block with his feet denied his fellow England teammate. Forced into back-to-back saves as both Silva and Rudiger threatened with headers from corners. EPA -
Jonjoe Kenny – 6 Made his first Premier League start of the season in a back five for the Toffees and couldn’t get the better of Ziyech on the flank. Reuters -
Michael Keane – 7 The senior head in a young backline quietly got on with his job. He did extremely well to hold off Pulisic and retain possession after the Chelsea man had trapped him into a corner. AP -
Mason Holgate – 6 The 25-year-old made his 100th Premier League appearance and was booked early on for a tackle on Ziyech. Massive interception in the 25th minute as Pulisic looked to tap in a low cross in front of goal. Another good block after half-time to stop Ziyech. Reuters -
Jarrad Branthwaite – 7 Made his first Premier League appearance since July 2020 and looked confident despite the opposition, dispossessing Mount in the process. Poked in Gordon’s free-kick to toe-poke an equaliser for Everton. Getty -
Ben Godfrey – 6 Continued at left-back with Rafa Benitez low on options but got forward well during Everton attacks. Was unable to contain Mount on that wing for large parts. AP -
Abdoulaye Doucoure – 6 Wasted an opportunity in a rare moment of attack for Everton, which saw the Toffees dispossessed and Chelsea score on the counter. Getty -
Andre Gomes – 6 The 28-year-old had a shot blocked early on as the Toffees hoped to put Chelsea on the backfoot in a rare Everton attack. Booked. Getty -
Alex Iwobi – 6 Didn’t see a lot of the ball in the first half but did well closing down and pressuring Chelsea, albeit the Blues were largely unaffected. Perhaps needed better decision-making, especially as Everton broke on the counter. Reuters -
Ellis Simms – 6 Made his Premier League debut for the club with Benitez unable to name a full-strength squad, but was largely chasing loose ends and countered by the experience of Rudiger and Silva. Getty -
Anthony Gordon – 8 Lively and a crucial part in any attacking effort by Everton. Supplied the free-kick for the equaliser. EPA -
SUBS: ALewis Dobbin (Simms 61’) – 6, Provided some respite for Simms. Had to hold up play and did well to slow down the game. Booked. EPA -
Jean-Philippe Gbamin (Gomes 71’) – N/R, A very quiet cameo from the bench. EPA -
Tyler Onyango (Gordon 90’) – N/R, The 18-year-old made a cameo from the bench as Everton looked to close out the draw. Reuters
So they may relish meeting Wolves, who have only scored twice in seven matches. There is still a need to tighten up. Whereas Tuchel had seemed able to bring players in and out of the team without disrupting the defensive record, now there is a greater focus on his decision-making. He could drop Andreas Christensen for opting not to sign a new contract when everything else functioned slickly. Now he may need the Dane.
And since Ben Chilwell was sidelined, Marcos Alonso has failed to recapture his excellent early-season form at left wing-back. Jorginho passed a test of character by converting two penalties against Leeds but his performance levels have dropped, in part because he has not been fully fit. Saul Niguez’s wretched start to life in London has only mattered in the last month amid midfield injuries and when the back three have been afforded less protection.
Tuchel may have to parachute Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante back on Sunday, earlier than would be ideal. The Croatian has missed the last 11 games, first with injury and then Covid, and was Chelsea’s most creative player at the start of the season.
Kante’s ability to snuff out danger has been missed. They have only conceded three goals with the hyperactive Frenchman on the pitch this season. Tuchel, the manager who built from the back from day one, surely sees clean sheets as the key to a revival. Again.
