Chelsea’s afternoon on Merseyside will be remembered less for the scoreline than for the long, uneasy pause in the second half. Pedro Neto struck twice to give Xabi Alonso’s side a 2-0 win at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium, yet the lasting image was goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez leaving the pitch on a stretcher.
Martinez was palming away a free kick when he and Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite clashed heads, and the Argentine landed heavily on the turf. Play was held up for more than ten minutes while he was treated before being taken to hospital; Branthwaite also needed attention. Alonso offered cautious reassurance afterwards. “As far as I know he left the stadium conscious,” the Chelsea coach said, adding that precautionary tests were under way.
A combative first half produced five yellow cards and few clear openings. Moises Caicedo came closest for the visitors when he hit the crossbar after a corner, while Everton’s Thierno Barry nodded a Jack Grealish delivery straight at Martinez. Chelsea needed only seconds after the restart to break through: Jorrel Hato reached the byline and Neto controlled his low ball before beating Jordan Pickford. Deep into eleven minutes of stoppage time the Portuguese winger pounced again after a Chelsea free kick had been blocked.
Belgian substitute Mike Penders, making his Premier League debut, was barely tested. The result ends Everton’s unbeaten start to the season and lifts Chelsea above them into the top four. It also brings the Londoners a first league clean sheet since January, ending a run of 22 matches in which they conceded at least once.
“We were solid, professional, and serious,” Alonso said, before warning that a single shutout would count for little unless many more follow.
