Everton’s early kick off against Chelsea took a feisty turn during the first half which saw a number of strong challenges from both sides.

David Moyes would have been delighted to see the fight on display from his Everton side in the opening 45 minutes. However, there was a 50/50 challenge between James Garner and Morgan Rogers which could have seen a red card shown by Paul Tierney for the Chelsea man.

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Pedro Neto scores for Chelsea 0-1 46'

Pedro Neto of Chelsea celebrates scoring his team’s first goal during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Everton and Chelsea FC at Hill Dickinson Stadium on October 17, 2026 in Liverpool, England.

The decision to allow Rogers off the hook without any further punishment stunned former Chelsea and Everton player Pat Nevin.

Pat Nevin shares Morgan Rogers verdict after foul on Everton’s James Garner

“Morgan Rogers gets the ball, though. He’s studs first. He’s off the ground when he does it. It looks ugly. I think the slow motion gets him away with it. But both feet were off the ground there,” said Nevin for BBC Sport.

“Both seemed allegedly injured.”

Garner is still working on his fitness levels after being forced to undergo surgery during the summer on a hernia. Thankfully, the challenge from Rogers did not have a lasting impact on the Everton midfielder after he was forced off the pitch.

Considering the yellow card that Harrison Armstrong received early on in the game, it was a surprise not to see Tierney pull out a yellow for Rogers. Perhaps the Chelsea star already being on a yellow card saved him as Tierney decided against taking any further action.

Chelsea were able to take advantage of not going down to 10-men early on in the second half after Pedro Neto provided the visitors with the lead.