Everton Notebook | Blues Unbeaten Start Ends in Chelsea Stumble

I experienced the first inkling of Everton-related trepidation regarding Chelsea 's visit to Hill Dickinson Stadium after listening to David Moyes' pregame comments. Of course, managers routinely big up the opposition – out of professional courtesy, but also as a kind of insurance against a bad result – but hearing the veteran manager describe the Londoners as always having been a strong outfit during his time in the game came off as an exaggeration. Despite spending exorbitant sums over the past two decades plus, first under Roman Abramovich and then Clearlake Capital, Chelsea have hardly looked invincible in recent years, finishing 12th in 2022/23 and 10th last season. Moreover, although Everton 's record at Stamford Bridge is bleak indeed, at home the Blues had beaten the visitors in six of the previous nine, losing just once.