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Everton 0-0 Chelsea: Dogged defending from Sam Allardyce's side frustrates the champions and earns the Toffees a share of the spoils at Goodison

By Joe Bernstein for The Mail on Sunday

Jordan Pickford won’t have done his World Cup prospects any harm by excelling in front of England manager Gareth Southgate as Everton’s revival continued under Sam Allardyce.
Everton didn’t muster a single shot on target at Goodison but they didn’t have to in order to extend their unbeaten run to seven matches.

Pickford, clad in bright orange, threw out a strong hand to tip over a sizzling strike from Pedro and then got down low to deny the Spaniard again early in the second half. For an encore, he then beat away a shot from inside the box from danger-man Eden Hazard.

When he was beaten, 35-year-old skipper Phil Jagielka cleared off the line twice in the same move as Antonio Conte’s men tried in vain to better close the gap on the top two Manchester clubs. They were also left cursing their luck when Ashley Williams inadvertently met a Victor Moses cross and headed against his own post.

‘This type of game, you deserve to win,’ grimaced Conte afterwards. Allardyce didn’t directly argue. ‘We scrapped it out. No doubt about that,’ he said.
At 23, Pickford is still young for a goalkeeper at the top level but with Joe Hart out of West Ham’s team and Stoke struggling this season with Jack Butland between the sticks, he could still be England’s No1 in Russia.

‘It might be a bit early but it’s not beyond what he can deal with,’ said Allardyce, who also worked with him at Sunderland. ‘He is 23 going on 30, very mature for his age.
‘He sometimes looks at me to say: “Why are you saying that – I’m a top-class goalkeeper. I quite like that. Self-assurance.
‘His starting position seems to be exceptionally good. He is able to get the right spot. But if he thinks he has made it and doesn’t do all that practise, he won’t achieve what he can.’

There were significant misses on both team-sheets. Wayne Rooney was absent through illness in the Everton line-up while Chelsea’s top scorer Alvaro Moratta was banned after over-celebrating his Carabao Cup winner against Bournemouth in midweek.
In the circumstances, and given Chelsea’s domination, it was perhaps surprising that Conte only threw on his fox-in-the-box Michy Batshuayi for the final 20 minutes, Hazard working as a false No 9 beforehand.
Allardyce likes to test himself tactically against the best European coaches and had a gameplan, pushing Idrissa Gueye onto Chelsea’s holding midfield players and allowing Victor Moses plenty of space on Chelsea’s right flank while trying to crowd Marcos Alonso on the other side.

It wasn’t pretty but Allardyce will point to the final score – and Everton’s record of five clean sheets in their unbeaten run – and the fans agree. The roar that greeted the final whistle couldn’t have been louder if Everton had managed a famous win.

They were put under pressure from the 10th minute when Hazard whipped in a cross and Jagielka was on the line to block Tiemoue Bakayoko’s shot after it had beaten goalkeeper Jordan Pickford. Willian followed up the rebound, the same player was there to clear again and receive a congratulatory handshake from Tom Davies.

Pickford kept Everton level with a brilliant stop as Pedro’s shot was bound for the top corner. Allardyce changed to three-at-the-back at half-time sacrificing Aaron Lennon and Davies but the gamble backfired six minutes into the second period when he was forced to make his final change with Idrissa Gueye hurting a hamstring.

Everton had to really dig in. Michael Keane took one for the team by being booked for a late foul on Hazard to thwart a Chelsea breakaway. Pickford twice got down low to keep his team in it and there was a collective sigh of relief when the ball fizzed off Williams and onto the woodwork.
Everton’s best chance of a goal came in injury-time when an unmarked Michael Keane headed a Gylfi Sigurdsson corner over, though that would have been daylight robbery.

‘Defensively, I can’t knock the team whatsoever,’ said Allardyce. ‘Phil Jagielka decided he wasn’t going to let Chelsea score today. Those goal-line clearances aren’t luck. That is reading the situation.’
It was Jagielka’s first start under Allardyce and justified the manager’s decision to change both centre-halves, with Williams and Mason Holgate on the bench.
The one downside is Gueye will miss Everton’s Boxing Day trip to West Brom.

 Chelsea will play worse than that on many occasions and win. Conte cut a frustrated figure at the end.
‘When you play this kind of game, with possession and 26 shots, for sure you must be disappointed. You have to take three points,’ he said.
‘I consider Everton the best team outside the top six teams and I thought we played a really good game, a good performance. We had to be more clinical. It’s a pity.’

Everton (4-4-1-1):
Pickford 7.5; Kenny 6, Jagielka 8, Keane 6.5, Martina 6; Schneiderlin 6; Lennon 6 (Sandro 45 6), Gueye 7.5 (Baningime 51 6), Davies 6.5 (Williams 45 7), Sigurdsson 6; Calvert-Lewin 6
Subs not used: Robles, Niasse, Holgate, Bolasie, Niasse
Booked: Calvert-Lewin 10, Martina 21, Keane 57

Chelsea (3-4-3): 
Courtois 6; Azpilicueta 6.5, Christiansen 6, Rudiger 6.5; Moses 6.5 (Zappacosta 81 6), Kante 7, Bakayoko 6.5, Alonso 7; Pedro 6.5 (Fabregas 63 6), Hazard 6.5, Willian 6.5 (Batshuayi 70 6.5)
Subs not used: Caballero, Drinkwater, Cahill, Hudson-Odoi
Ref: Bobby Madley 6.5


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