Is Potter starting to work his magic at Chelsea? Blues aim to continue upturn in results against Everton

BY PAUL LAGAN
paul@slpmedia.co.uk

Chelsea head into tomorrow’s Premier League encounter against Everton full of confidence, buoyed by three wins on the spin.

Three points for the Blues could put a big nail in the coffin of the relegation-haunted Toffees.

Graham Potter could recall fit-again goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, who returned to full training with the squad this week following surgery on a fractured finger in January.

It’s more likely Potter will resist the temptation and leave Kepa Arrizabalaga as his number one and revisit the position after the upcoming international break.

Chelsea put on an assured performance against lowly Leicester City last weekend, winning 3-1 at The King Power Stadium.

German striker Kai Havertz scored the second goal which restored their lead, one which the Blues never looked like surrendering again.

Havertz produced a muted celebration after he had looped the ball over the goalkeeper from close range on the stroke of half-time .

He said: “Nowadays, with VAR, it is hard because I thought I was way offside.

“I have scored so many goals when I was then offside, so I thought for sure they were going to take it back. But I scored and that’s what is most important.”

Asked why Chelsea have suddenly clicked after some poor results, he said: “We have so many players. We knew it was going to take some time to adapt for everyone. So maybe, you could see that we are still not finished. It will always take time to develop.

“Of course, to win three games in a row is important for us because we had a tough time before that. We knew we would bounce back.

“We still have a game to play before the national team. We have to keep our focus high and win against Everton.

“Football is our life. If you lose a game, you don’t have an easy life as well. I think everyone at home, especially my girlfriend, has had some tough weeks as well, the last weeks and months. She is happy now again and so am I.

“For you guys, it is the same. If you have a bad day at work…I won’t say the word now, but you don’t feel good. Football is a game where we have a lot of pressure on our shoulders.

“We want to make the fans happy and if you don’t make them happy then you don’t have a good time. Winning is always the best, we won again so we can enjoy some days.”

Chelsea appear stuck in 10th position, needing to win games and hope those above them drop points if they are to sneak into Europe via the league this season.

Havertz said: “We look game by game. The goal at Chelsea is always to win something.

“This season it is going to be hard to win the Premier League but we still have a lot of games to play. We can get a lot of points. We have to keep up the pressure on the other teams. The Champions League is also a big tournament for us so we have something to play for. “

Chelsea Women face Reading away on Sunday in the FA Cup quarter finals. Emma Hayes is still without the injured Fran Kirby, Katerina Svitkova and Pernille Harder. Erin Cuthbert is a doubt with a knock.