Everton were bereft of ideas in the 2-0 defeat to Chelsea this afternoon.

Everton were really poor going forward and hardly troubled Chelsea at all, with fans pointing the finger at David Moyes.

Moyes picked a defensive line-up as he decided to leave Tyrique George and Tyler Dibling on the bench, with Merlin Rohl, who has played right-back all season, operating as a winger.

David Moyes wanted Merlin Rohl vs Chelsea wing-back Pep Chavarria

Speaking to Everton’s media team, Moyes admitted he expected Chelsea left wing-back Pep Chavarria to start, so he felt Rohl was needed to help Ainsley Maitland-Niles at right-back.

Chavarria wasn’t in the squad, so it ended up being a really strange decision from the Scotsman.

“We expected (Chavarria) to start, with his attacking work,” the Toffees manager explained.

“We thought the best person to work against him was Merlin. That was the reason for that. But Merlin’s played wide right, right-back, different roles for us.

“I thought he probably did better at right-back because he put in a couple of good crosses for us.”

In hindsight, Moyes should’ve taken the handbrake off and given George the nod after his impressive performances this term.

The 63-year-old has a habit of going safety first in the big games rather than allowing his talented young players to attack the game.

Ultimately, he got it wrong today, but it feels harsh to criticise him too heavily. Moyes has overseen a very positive start to the season after a disastrous summer transfer window.

That was Everton’s first defeat of the campaign, so it’s important to keep perspective and remain balanced.

Chelsea have one of the best attacks in Europe and could be in a title race in Spring.