EVERTON 0-2 CHELSEA: Player ratings from the Hill Dickinson Stadium as Pedro Neto fired the Blues to an impressively brave and resilient victory in Merseyside

Pedro Neto found the net on either side of the second half at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday afternoon, leading Chelsea to an impressively brave and resilient victory in Merseyside.

After a particularly slow start in Merseyside, Alonso's side finally crafted an opening. Midway through the first half, Josh Achemapong combined nicely with Pedro Neto down the right-hand side, who then cut the ball back to Jordan Henderson on the edge of the box; his rather tame effort was blocked, though.

Shortly before the half-hour mark, Emi Martinez made a couple of confident saves to deny the Toffees. First, the Chelsea goalkeeper gathered a close-range header from Anthony Barry before tipping over a half-volley by Jack Grealish.

Then, just before the break, tensions almost boiled over when Morgan Rogers and James Garner clashed shins. Both the Blues forward, who had been booked a few moments earlier for squaring up to James Tarkowski, and the Everton midfielder dived into the tackle, engaging in a nasty – but fair – challenge.

Chelsea leapt out of the gates in the second half, breaking the deadlock inside 90 seconds of the restart. Morgan Rogers brought the ball down brilliantly deep into the Toffees' half before unleashing Jorrel Hato down the left-hand side.

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The Chelsea defender, who replaced the injured Pep Chavarria in the starting lineup, galloped into the Everton box before picking out Pedro Neto, unmarked at the back post, to guide into the near bottom corner. Then, midway through the second half, there was an extended stoppage in play when Martinez collided with Jarrad Branthwaite.

The Blues goalkeeper, who was replaced by Mike Penders, had to be carefully stretchered off the pitch, technically registering his first clean sheet since swapping Villa Park for Stamford Bridge in the summer. Chelsea should have put the tie to bed in the final minutes when Cole Palmer spearheaded a three-versus-one counterattack.

The assault on Moyes' backline fizzled out when Pickford denied Joao Pedro from close range. Neto spared his blushes, though, doubling the Blues' lead, popping up in a pocket of space inside the box, again.

So, with that being said, football.london has rated the performance of each and every Chelsea player.

Emi Martinez – 6

Martinez made a couple of particularly nice saves in the first half to keep the scoreline square, denying Anthony Barry from close range and tipping a half-volley over the bar from Jack Grealish. The Chelsea shot-stopper, generally speaking, did well, even if he did needlessly concede a corner for holding onto the ball for too long!

Midway through the second half, Martinez bravely launched himself into an aerial duel with Tarkowski to clear a corner. After an extended stoppage in play, the Blues goalkeeper was stretchered off the pitch and replaced by Mike Penders, technically registering his first clean sheet of the season.

Levi Colwill – 6

Safe and assured at the back. No complaints.

Maxence Lacroix – 6

Again, like Colwill, Lacroix was reliable at the heart of the defence.

Josh Acheampong – 6

Acheampong did particularly well in the first half, weathering the storm. Otherwise didn't look out of place at all.

Jorrel Hato – 6

Hato made an excellent run before displaying great composure to pick out Neto, who broke the deadlock at the back post.

Jordan Henderson – 6

The Everton crowd booed his every touch, but Henderson, a Merseyside derby veteran, relished the meaty clash.

Moises Caicedo – 6

Chelsea, again, looked assured with Caicedo in the middle of the park, glueing things together.

Pedro Neto – 8

Neto was electric after the break, giving Chelsea the breathing room they needed after a cagey first half. Won the game for Chelsea with two second-half strikes, showing his attacking prowess that is crucial to the way Alonso wants to play.

Morgan Rogers – 7

Rogers was a little isolated in the first half, so there wasn't much opportunity to show his quality to begin with. He showed another side of his game just seconds after the break, though, pinning Ainsley Maitland-Niles from a goalkick with his great strength and unleashing Hato, who went on to set up the opener, with a lovely pass.

All in all, resilient display.

Cole Palmer – 6

Palmer was fairly quiet in the first half, often dropping deep to get involved in play.

Joao Pedro – 5

Pedo did well to hold his own, physically, against James Tarkowski and Branthwaite, but he, too, didn't get much of a sniff in the Everton box. The Chelsea striker should've put the tie to bed following a late counter, but Pickford did well.

Substitutes

Mike Penders – 6

Penders didn't have much to do, but he made a great impression towards the end of the game. Everton delivered a cross deep into the Chelsea box; at first, it looked well out of his remit, but the shot-stopper darted off his line and punched the ball clear. Brave.

Danny Welbeck – N/A

Marco Palestra– N/A

Romeo Lavia – N/A

Chelsea starting lineup vs Everton: Emi Martinez; Levi Colwill, Maxence Lacroix, Josh Acheampong; Jorrel Hato, Jordan Henderson, Moises Caicedo, Pedro Neto; Morgan Rogers, Cole Palmer; Joao Pedro

Substitutes: Mike Penders; Wesley Fofana, Marco Palestra; Valentin Barco; Romeo Lavia, Mahdi Nicoll-Jazuli; Estevao Willian, Geovany Quenda, Danny Welbeck.