Both teams had a week on the training ground while their rivals endured European competition. Fourth v sixth in the Premier League’s big game on Saturday promises to be a cracker with good wins for Chelsea and Everton last weekend.

The pair played out a 3 – 3 draw in the corresponding fixture last season with Everton dropping a 2 – 0 lead and then conceding a 98th minute equaliser to John Terry, who was at a yard offside.

Revenge is in the air for the Toffees but Antonio Conte has the Blues firing on all cylinders at the moment so an intriguing encounter is on the cards.

CHELSEA

Since being comprehensively taken apart at the Emirates, Chelsea have won four consecutive Premier League games without conceding a goal. The only blip in this time was an EFL Cup defeat at West Ham where events in the stands made more headlines than the football.

That unbeaten run includes the impressive 4 – 0 demolition of Manchester United and 2 – 0 win at Southampton. It’s the Blues best form of the season, inspired by Eden Hazard recapturing the consistency which saw him voted Player of the Year in 2014/15.

The improvement is in no small part due to Antonio Conte switching to his favoured back three, freeing the individual talents of not only Hazard but also Victor Moses and Pedro. The Spaniard was outstanding against United and Southampton, at a time when it seemed he was heading toward the exit door.

Changing formation has freed Chelsea of the pall which hung over the club following a troubling summer when landing targets proved problematic. Good early results masked inconsistent performances but the back-to-back defeats to Liverpool and Arsenal were certainly a wake-up call that Conte and the players needed.

One point behind the top three sees them handily placed to mount a title challenge and that can’t be discounted just yet.

EVERTON

Appointing Ronald Koeman as successor to the affable Roberto Martinez has reinvigorated Everton but retaining Romelu Lukaku is proving to be the best signing of the summer. The Belgian has netted seven already this season but the biggest problem the Toffees have is finding a supporting cast.

Ross Barkley and Gareth Barry with two each are the next in the Toffees goalscorers list which underlines the need for them to find another goalscorer from within the squad.

Yannick Bolasie broke his duck for the season netting in the recent 1 – 2 defeat against Burnley but with four assists already is proving to be worth every penny of the £25m fee paid to Crystal Palace.

Burnley are the only Premier League side to net more than once against Everton this season which indicates that the defence is heading in the right direction. However, the lack of goals is a problem when they have only kept clean sheets against three of the bottom four sides in the league.

Barkley has a bigger role to play but expectations are high and weigh heavy on his shoulders. Chelsea will no doubt look to snuff out his threatening midfield runs with Matic adept in the spoiling role.

The recent point earned at the Etihad warns Chelsea that Everton will not roll over and Ronald Koeman will be happy if they repeat that.

The summer transfer fandango between the two clubs over Lukaku and his assertion that he has “unfinished business” at Stamford Bridge suggest the Belgian will be hyper-motivated to do well and it will be no surprise if he ruins Chelsea’s record of four clean sheets.

FORM (Last six games)

Chelsea - LWWWLW
Everton - LLDDLW

STATS

• Diego Costa has 3 goals and 1 assist in his 3 Premier League matches against Everton

• It’s been 22 years since Everton last won a league match at Stamford Bridge, drawing 10 and losing 11 since.

• Romelu Lukaku scored his 50th Premier League goal since leaving Chelsea in 2013 against West Ham last weekend

• Everton have only kept 1 clean sheet in the last 10 Stamford Bridge visits

• Steven Naismith is the only player to score a hat-trick in this fixture in Premier League history (12/09/2015)

CURRENT MATCH ODDS [BEST PRICED ODDS]

 Chelsea: 4/7 (Paddy Power) - Bet Here!  Draw: 16/5 (Skybet) - Bet Here!   Everton: 6/1 (William Hill) - Bet Here!

HEAD TO HEAD

Last six meetings
12.03.2016    FA Cup 6R            Everton 2 – 0 Chelsea    
16.01.2016    Premier League    Chelsea 3 – 3 Everton
12.09.2015    Premier League    Everton 3 – 1 Chelsea
11.02.2015    Premier League    Chelsea 1 – 0 Everton
30.08.2014    Premier League    Everton 3 – 6 Chelsea
22.04.2014    Premier League    Chelsea 1 – 0 Everton

SUMMING UP!

Chelsea’s good form will be tested against an Everton side who showed at Manchester City that they are capable of digging in and grinding out a result. They also showed at Burnley that they can be wasteful with chances, which will cost them dearly at Stamford Bridge.

With Diego Costa and Romelu Lukaku both high in the scoring charts, it seems unlikely that a goalless draw will occur but neither side is conceding many goals, both averaging around 0.8 per game this season.

Even so, history is against Everton and only Tottenham have a worse record at Stamford Bridge during the Premier League years. Another win for the Blues is the likeliest outcome.

MY RECOMMENDED BETS

• Correct score: 1 – 1 draw (8/1 with BetVictor) - Bet Here!

• Romelu Lukaku anytime goalscorer (9/4 with Skybet) - Bet Here!

• Romelu Lukaku and Diego Costs anytime goalscorer double (9/2 with William Hill) - Bet Here!

• Pedro first goalscorer (6/1 with Bet 365) - Bet Here!

• Everton to win with both sides scoring (11/1 with Betfair) - Bet Here!

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