Chelsea 2-2 Everton: Player ratings as Toffees snatch late point

Simms stole his team a point
Simms stole his team a point / Clive Rose/GettyImages
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Everton gained a vital point in their fight against relegation after snatching a late draw at Chelsea.

The Blues squandered one-goal leads on two occasions, with the Toffees returning to Merseyside buoyant in their battle against the drop.

Chelsea came flying out the blocks, pushing for an opener from the off and almost getting one within the first five minutes with Mateo Kovacic firing just wide of Jordan Pickford's goal.

The opening stages were a sign of things to come with the hosts continuing to dominate and Everton rarely making it out of their own half in the first 30 minutes of the match. Despite that though, Graham Potter's wide weren't able to create any clear-cut chances.

The visitors came out of their shells in the closing stages of the first half, getting on the ball more and causing the Chelsea backline some problems, but they weren't able to force Kepa Arrizabalaga into action.

By the time the referee blew the whistle for half-time, the Spaniard hadn't had to make a single save while Pickford's three were all comfortable, with neither side ever really looking like breaking the deadlock.

Chelsea finally managed to do so at the start of the second half courtesy of Joao Felix, who controlled the ball on the edge of the box and sent it against the post and into the back of the net.

He then almost got an assist straight after but was offside, causing Christian Pulisic's goal to be ruled out.

Going behind hardly sparked Everton into life with the match looking more likely to become 2-0 than 1-1 but they did look a threat from set-pieces and ultimately drew level from one just before the 70th minute with Abdoulaye Doucoure heading the ball over the line from close range.

Sean Dyche's side couldn't stay level for long though with Reece James winning a penalty under a challenge from James Tarkowski five minutes later, and Kai Havertz converting it to put his team back in the lead.

Chelsea looked comfortable after that and looked set to take the three as the game entered its closing stages, but a moment of magic from substitute Ellis Simms changed that, with the youngster taking on Kalidou Koulibaly and slotting past Kepa.

The hosts didn't have time to respond after that with the two sides sharing the spoils.


Chelsea player ratings (3-4-3)

GK: Kepa Arrizabalaga - 4/10 - Only had three shots to deal with and let two of them in - he could have done better for the second goal in particular.

CB: Wesley Fofana - 6/10 - Was solid at the back, winning most of his duels both on the ground and in the air, but gave the ball away a lot.

CB: Kalidou Koulibaly - 4/10 - Dealt with Demarai Gray fairly well and was good on the ball but was beaten far too easily for Everton's second, undoing all of his good work.

CB: Benoit Badiashile - 6/10 - Looked the least comfortable of the Chelsea backline but didn't do too much wrong.

RM: Reece James - 7/10 - Caused Everton a huge amount of problems on the right, creating chances and winning a penalty with his runs.

CM: Enzo Fernandez - 7/10 - Created the opening goal with an excellent cross-field pass and made some good tackles too.

CM: Mateo Kovacic - 6/10 - As if often the case, was solid if unspectacular in midfield, providing a platform for his more creative team-mates.

LM: Ben Chilwell - 7/10 - Played a part in the opening goal and was a threat throughout on the left.

RW: Kai Havertz - 6/10 - Took his penalty well but didn't do a huge amount from open play.

ST: Joao Felix - 7/10 - Scored a good goal, his first at Stamford Bridge,

LW: Christian Pulisic - 6/10 - Looked lively on his return from injury.


Substitutes

Conor Gallagher (62' for Pulisic) - 4/10

Ruben Loftus-Cheek (81' for Kovacic) - N/A

Carney Chukwuemeka (86' for Felix) - N/A

Trevor Chalobah (86' for Fofana) - N/A


Manager

Graham Potter - 5/10 - Set up his team well to start with but left them exposed at the back even when 2-1 up, and his substitues had a negative effect.


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Everton player ratings (4-5-1)

GK: Jordan Pickford - 6/10 - Couldn't do much about either goal and made a few good saves.

RB: Seamus Coleman - 5/10 - Struggled against Chilwell and Pulisic at times and couldn't do anything going forward.

CB: Michael Keane - 6/10 - Missed a good chance but was solid at the back.

CB: James Tarkowski - 6/10 - Made some good blocks and clearances and got an assist, but did give away a penalty.

LB: Ben Godfrey - 5/10 - Didn't do too well at either end, struggling to deal with James.

RM: Alex Iwobi - 6/10 - Worked hard and made some good runs, but his final pass was poor at times.

CM: Amadou Onana - 6/10 - Was decent on the ball and won possession a few times.

CM: Idrissa Gueye - 5/10 - Got a yellow card, made a number of other fouls and lost the ball a lot.

CM: Abdoulaye Doucoure - 8/10 - Got one goal, one assist, made some other excellent passes and battled hard in midfield.

LM: Dwight McNeil - 5/10 - Failed to make much of an impact in attack and could have tracked James better.

ST: Demarai Gray - 6/10 - Worked really hard and linked up play well, but couldn't cause too many problems himself.

Substitutes

Ellis Simms (79' for Gueye) - 7/10 - Only had six touches but made the most of them, winning his team a point but with a superb goal.

Vitaliy Mykolenko (84' for Coleman) - N/A


Manager

Sean Dyche - 8/10 - His impact on the club is already clear to see with Everton well-drilled at the back and a threay from set-pieces. His sub earned his team a point.


Player of the match - Abdoulaye Doucoure (Everton)